"Grandmother, I'm leaving." Morning came and now Komatsu's scarf reached her lips. She found herself smiling though; she could pretend she was Kakashi-sensei.

"Where's my goodbye kiss?" The old woman asked, a glint in her eye. When Komatsu lowered her scarf in obedience, she chuckled, shoving her away. "My, my! Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" She continued to cackle as Komatsu pulled it back up, bowed and walked out, holding multiple boxes.

Naruto probably wasn't going to eat a proper breakfast, and who knew what Sasuke's eating habits were and then it'd just be plain rude to leave her sensei out wouldn't it? Speaking of senseis... She spotted Iruka just ahead, whistling to himself. She reached out her hand to him, to call to him but went limp. How was she meant to explain this? She wanted to tell him everything about her team, about how she felt guilty about not feeling guilty for Sakura. How she already missed the Academy. Instead she watched him until he turned into a speck, clutching her lunch boxes rightly.

"Are you thinking of being late too?" Kakashi materialised next to her, causing her to shriek through cloth. "Maa, maa and here I thought you were the most controlled in the group." He glanced down at her full arms. "For me? You shouldn't have." He froze mid wink when she offered up one of them to him. "Oh. Actually for me." Komatsu stared up at him, eyes wide and expectant. "Well, thank you." He went to pet her head but stopped at the hood. "Maa, I can see even less of your face than you can see of mine. That must be against the rules." She stiffened, protectively gripping her collar. Neither spoke for a moment until the taller of them took a step ahead, hands stuffed in pockets. "Wanna get lost on the path of life?"

"We-I should, um, probably be there on time, Sensei."

"Well you're no fun are you?"

"Oi, Sensei! You're late!" Naruto screeched, jabbing his finger at the spiky haired man. "And you too Komatsu-chan?" He pouted, arms crossed.

"Pretty unprofessional if you ask me." Sasuke leant on the bridge's railing, tapping his feet.

"S-Sorry, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun." Komatsu bowed. "I ran into Kakashi-sensei and, um, I..." she looked up incredulously at her teacher. "How did we run late?"

Kakashi shrugged. "You got me." He shushed Naruto's further protests and instead held out a scroll. "As promised, today we will be receiving our first official mission as Squad Seven."

Naruto's eyes sparkled. "Yes! Well then what're we waiting for?-apart from you Sensei."

Sasuke snorted softly, and Komatsu forced a muffled laugh.

"Guess not much."

Kakashi simply sighed, shrugged and began to casually climb up the nearest building's walls. He looked behind to catch awed gazes but frowned when there were none. Instead he found Komatsu toddling up after him, slipping every few steps like a newborn babe. Naruto and Sasuke were shoving one another trying to climb up after her, falling down quickly after getting a foot up.

"Well that's different."

Most clan children were well aware of tree walking from a young age, but considering his three genin's circumstances, he'd assumed them ignorant.

"Oi dobe, get out of the way." Sasuke elbowed his face, struggling up the wall. "You're just gonna fall anyway."

"Nuh-uh!" Naruto barked back. "Teme, I'll show you-dattebayo!" He shoved a palm in the other boy's face and he managed to propel himself a little higher. Komatsu let out a small gasp as he clipped her ankle and quickly leapt to a nearby railing, clinging on for dear life. "A-Ah sorry Komatsu-chan!"

Kakashi sighed. He followed Komatsu and picked her up to join the boys on the street. "Let's just...walk, shall we?" Komatsu scrambled away, clutching her shoulders.

All three of them had to agree.


"Why can't we get a better mission?! We're real ninja now and real ninja should be out doing important stuff not gardening." Naruto screeched, shaking his fist at the Hokage and Iruka, the latter of whom bit back.

"You're just genin! This is your first mission! Be grateful you're helping out the village at all!" Iruka's voice was so rarely raised in her presence, Komatsu still winced. "Stop being a runt and do your part!"

"Iruka," Hiruzen placed a hand inbetween the two and cleared his throat. "You are well aware of the rules, Naruto. You do not simply get to defend your village-you must earn that honour." Naruto's foul disposition shifted for a moment, and his brows furrowed in deep contemplation. It was just enough time for Kakashi to saunter to the desk and push his knuckle headed student back, much to his chagrin.

"So what's on the list today? After all their complaining you've got to give us something worth it, right Iruka-kun?" Kakashi winked and Iruka flushed scarlet. Komatsu covered the remainder of her face with her scarf. She understood Iruka was an adult but there were some things she just didn't want to see.

Hiruzen unravelled a rather impressive looking scroll and began to speak in such a low, monotone voice Komatsu wondered if he was deliberately provoking Naruto. "Babysitting a senior councillor's son, weeding Hiroshi-san's garden, picking potatoes for the local farms-oh Tora is lost again I see-and finding herbs for local medical practices." He glanced up from the parchment, eyebrow raised. "Any takers?"

Kakashi peered into each of his students' eyes. Bored, bored and frankly terrified. To his surprise, Komatsu pattered forward, hand raised tentatively. Iruka beamed down at her, urging her to speak.

"Ma-May we please help...herbs..?" She mumbled, wringing her hands. Iruka strained to hear her speak but Hiruzen leant back, nodding.

"Is that agreeable with you, Kakashi?"

Kakashi didn't get a chance to speak however as Naruto scoffed, looking away indignantly. "That's boring. Why can't we go rescue a princess or somethin' instead? That'd be way more fun, 'tte bayo!"

"It's our first mission dweeb. They're not going to give us that straight away." Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Besides, civilians don't have as easy way in to hospitals and medical ninjutsu like us." With the constant backlog of wounded soldiers, even during times of peace, small clinics for lesser, civilian needs were allowed to be established, provided they reported to the hospital every season or so. Komatsu had always dreamt of running her own little clinic, paintings covering the walls and ceilings.

She sighed.

"Well yeah, but we're us. First team ever to pass Kakashi-sensei's test! That makes us special on default right?" Naruto reasoned, still huffing. Komatsu slipped away from their little huddle, scanning their options. There was the forest-or the training ground perhaps? But the outskirts had rarer herbs because the civilians were always too worried about the Nara deer or Yamanaka boar to go looking.

Komatsu had only met the Ino-Shika-Cho when she was caught doing target practice with their family's symbols. She was let off of course. They couldn't blame a civilian child. And she had a feeling her grandmother's instant connection with Yoshino played a part in it too.

"W-Well yeah. But-!"

"Team Kakashi, good luck with your first mission. I wish you success." Hiruzen deposited the scroll into the jounin's reluctant hand and gave them a dismissive wave. He took a long breath from his pipe-he loved all of the village's children but he was old. All of the other attendants at the mission desk breathed a sigh of relief as well. There was always that squad.

"This is so unfair!" Naruto grumbled as Kakashi yanked him by the collar to the door. Sasuke strode alongside, snickering. Komatsu followed behind after turning to give the Hokage and Iruka a small bow. Both chuckled and nodded in acknowledgement. "Get off me!" He snapped, batting Kakashi's hand away. The man sighed and mumbled something about having to grab extra supplies before wandering into another room. Komatsu was pretty sure he was grabbing sleeping pills. "We still shouldn't be doing this stupid mission," he huffed. "Why'd ya go and pick it Komatsu-chan? Don't ya wanna do anything exciting?" Komatsu looked at the ground, shuffling from left to right.

"U-Um, I, er, thought it'd be fun." Both boys' eyebrows were raised in suspicion. "L-Like herbs are in the fore-forests right? W-We could train while looking for them. R-Remember what you said yesterday, Sasuke-kun?" The Uchiha's expression relaxed slightly, and after a moment of careful contemplation, he nodded.

Naruto's foul disposition suddenly morphed into one of excitement. "That's right! You were gonna teach us that super cool awesome jutsu thing weren't you?!" He was now bouncing off the walls.

"It's not a jutsu, it's a chakra control exercise," she replied almost automatically, reciting what her grandmother had told her so many times. She curled her arms around her shoulders, avoiding eye contact with her teammates. "And I've been told I'm not that good at it, so don't get your hopes up or anything..."

"It'll be better than whatever he can teach us." Sasuke tilted his head towards the approaching Kakashi, who appeared relatively calmer and pleasantly surprised at his students' quiet chit chat.

"Have we all decided to get along now munchkins?" He ruffled Sasuke and Naruto's hair, receiving swipes from both of them. "Well not all of us, clearly. Now, we've got the list of herbs we need, the problem is finding them. It'll be just like a scavenger hunt, eh?"

"Oo! Oo! Do we get a prize?!" Naruto looked up excitedly, grinning from ear to ear.

"We get paid, idiot." Sasuke's terseness was enough to restart their bickering all over again.

"What'd you say teme?! How dare you soeak to the future Hokage like that, dattebayo!"

"Well, it was a nice ninety seconds," Kakashi hummed, nose crinkling down at Komatsu. She nodded but shrunk away from the two boys, trying to avoid being caught in the crossfire.


"It's this one! I'm sure of it!" Naruto stomped on the ground, shaking the plant in his hands roughly. Around him were shredded remains of harvested flora, all of which not what he was looking for.

"Um, no. It's not, Naruto-kun. Good try though," Komatsu carefully coaxed the weed out of his palm, letting it drop into the flora graveyard below. The boy pouted, arms crossed. Sasuke snorted from a few metres away, face buried in a rather elaborate looking diagram. Kakashi basked in the sun in a branch above, reading leisurely. "B-But that's okay! This is a, um, tricky one."

"Found it." Sasuke threw a bunch into the boys' communal basket, adding to their modest pile. "It's not hard if you just look, dweeb." Naruto went to bark angrily but Komatsu stepped in between them. This was her territory, so she'd found herself much more in control than usual. That and she felt thrilled she knew something Sasuke didn't.

"Ma-Maybe you should share the list then, Sasuke-kun?" She suggested. Kakashi cocked his head, indicating his attention.

"Yeah, teme! Give the rest of us a go!" Naruto fumed. "Komatsu-chan and I are at a disadvantage! We have no hope of winning sensei's prize otherwise!"

Kakashi chuckled. "Actually, little Wallflower here is miles ahead of you both. But I suppose you were too busy to notice." Komatsu's basket was considerably fuller than theirs' and Sasuke's eye twitched upon realising it. "Chop chop. Lin-san wanted these back by four and it's already noon."

"Noon!?" Naruto boomed. "I feel like we've been out here for hours!" On cue, his stomach growled loudly. "It's lunchtime sensei," he whined. "Can't we take a break?"

Kakashi gazed at his remaining students, both of whom's expressions held nothing but indifference. "Mmmm, nope." He slid back comfortably into his branch. "You can rest easy when you're finished, and by the looks of it you've a ways to go." He beckoned Komatsu with a lazy hand as the other two wrestled for the scroll and she wobbled up the tree to stand beside him, peering down cautiously. "Don't try and read, it's not for kiddies," he tsked, smirking when her cheeks turned as red as her hair. "I was just going to ask if you could give the others a bit of a headstart. You seem to be a bit of a herbology prodigy." It was flattery rather than praise she knew. These herbs were basic; Sasuke just considered studying plants beneath him and Naruto probably didn't even know you could.

Komatsu blushed, shaking her head. "I garden..." she mumbled. "Sakura-san would've known all these too," she clenched her fists, stomach twisting in knots.

"Probably," Kakashi agreed. "She was the top kunoichi in your class." Komatsu nodded dumbly, unsure as to where this was leading. "Would you check on her for me?" Komatsu blinked. "You're classmates, I'm sure she'll appreciate it." Komatsu wanted to say how much she truly wouldn't, vehemently deny any connection to the girl. But Kakashi had already turned his head back to his novel and lost all sense of hearing once more. She sighed and dropped down to face her teammates.

"Give it 'ere!" Naruto and Sasuke played tug of war with a now battered and bruised stalk. Komatsu tip toed around them, unsure if intervention was really necessary. "Do you wanna lose, teme?" He hissed, glancing back at Komatsu with slit eyes. For a moment Komatsu could have sworn she saw a deadly shade of red and jumped.

She was still forgetting what he was. No, she reminded herself instantly. What's inside him. She went to her own work, trying to block out the angry, terrifying tones.

"I'd prefer finishing the mission and getting away from losers like you," Sasuke spat back. "What good are you? Look, it's all torn!" The leaves were split in half and its stem looked rather lifeless. Sasuke was about to stomp on it when Komatsu snatched it from his grasp. His neck snapped towards her and she let out a small yelp realising what she did.

"Root…" She mumbled, averting her gaze. "Leaves don't matter…" She carefully stripped down its top half before placing it inside the boys' basket, aware of the two pairs of eyes on her every move. "I think—m-maybe!—you're almost done." Naruto glanced down at his basket pleasantly surprised. He didn't remember putting that many in, but he supposed he was great like that, wasn't he?

Sasuke narrowed his eyes but said nothing.

"Yeah! Look sensei! We're done before Komatsu-chan!" Naruto pointed proudly, chest puffed out. Kakashi just grunted in the affirmative.

"Well help her finish her pile, go deliver it and meet me back here then," he snipped, nose buried in cheap paper.

Komatsu poked her head up from beneath a bush, bunches already in her hands. "What'd he say?"

"We're going," Sasuke grunted. "And then you're teaching me how to climb." The corners of his lips twitched in anticipation.

Naruto scoffed but Komatsu found herself smiling. "Le-Let's go then. More time for training." She felt stifled squashed inbetween the two boys, dark aura oozing from their every pore. "Wh-What do you think of Kakashi-sensei?" She offered, turning her head to both of them in turn.

He's annoying!" Naruto huffed, swinging his basket up. "He's just interested in his stupid little book—what's so cool about it?" Sasuke and Komatsu averted their gaze, the latter's cheeks heating up. "And his mask! Why can't we see his face? Pretty fishy if you ask me."

Komatsu was fidgeting with her scarf when Sasuke replied, "Good thing no one did, then." Naruto went to retort but he continued. "He is strong. Stronger than me. But it looks like he's going to be a lousy teacher." He dug his hands in his pockets and his eyes glazed over as he stared into the sky. "And I need to be stronger."

The air grew tense and as Sasuke clenched his fists, Komatsu gently bumped them with her basket. "Y-You'll get stronger—both of you." She nodded to the blond boy, receiving a grin in return. "And—and we've—we've got to help each other to do it, right? Kakashi-sensei said so."

Sasuke snorted. "Who knew." Komatsu and Naruto urged him to go on but he just shrugged. "Kakashi actually said something useful."

Naruto snickered, "Good one, teme!" and promptly tripped himself up on a branch. Sasuke chuckled under his breath.

And Komatsu let herself breathe once more.


The clinic was on the outskirts of the village and its wooden walls had been eaten at by rot and termites. The fields surrounding it hadn't seen life in quite some time and she gasped despite herself. Her teammates also gritted their teeth as they approached the door, hearing cries from within. Naruto pushed himself through, snapping off part of the wall in the process.

"Please Jiichirou, you've got to do something." A tanned woman crept into view, on her knees and beating her fists against the floor. "Don't give me that crap! Why can't you get your own damn herbs?"

"I told ya, civilians ain't allowed there. It's a training ground—I'd be necked on the spot." Smoothing her fringe and bringing her to her feet was a boy—surely not older than them? –hazel eyes blazing beneath their gentle demeanour. Naruto charged in and before the boy had a chance to grab the scalpel beside him, shoved the basket in his face.

The woman yelped as Komatsu and Sasuke trailed in behind him, wearing expressions of concern and frustration respectively. "Dobe, don't scare the client!" He growled in his ear, yanking him away by the wrist.

"I-I, um, I'm so-sorry for the intrusion." Komatsu bowed before the bemused pair, hands together. "Please forgive us." She offered up her basket. "We are the shinobi that were, um, sent to collect your he-herbs…" She trailed off, finding the civilians' stares directed towards the boys rather than her. "So, um—"

"She was crying! What was I meant to do?" Naruto shrugged off his companion, baring his teeth.

"You could show some tact!" Sasuke snapped back, now shouting along with Naruto.

"'Scuse me, but if ya wanna stay then y'all gonn n." The boy, dirty smock hugging his front, stamped the floor with his hands on his hips. "I have a patient and they need peace and quiet." He sternly pointed to the tatami mats in the centre of the room. "Sit."

And Komatsu's jaw dropped when the two boys obeyed, mindlessly following them.

"I-I'm so-sorry," she started to the young woman, but she shook her head, gathered her auburn hair into a messy bun and stood.

"I need it soon, Jiichirou. Tonight." She hissed, limping out the door.

"What was her problem?" Naruto muttered, earning a shove from Sasuke.

Jiichirou gave an appraising glance to the genin before moving to Komatsu and taking her basket. "My name is Sekemoto Jiichirou, doctor here. Now, shinobi-san, we're gonna to wait patiently while I count out these herbs and if there's a single one missin' yer gonna bring it back ten-fold, a'right?"

"What the hell is your problem?" Naruto jumped to his feet, arms folded. "We went and did this for you and that's all you got to say, dattebayo?! You're just a kid!"

"And I'm all these people 'ave," he barked in retort. "I paid ya to do this, donnae take the high ground with me." He scoffed and turned to Komatsu. "Put 'im on a leash, he's an animal." Naruto's angry expression cracked and was replaced with the solemness Komatsu had come to associate cracked lips and red hand marks. She wanted to tell Jiichirou how wrong he was—how Naruto was more human than any of them.

But she couldn't say a word but just watch him stare at the ground.

"Mm…this one is pushing it quality wise…" Jiichirou squinted at a peculiar root, rubbing it between his fingers. "Shinobi always act like we should be so grateful for y'all but ya donnae actually do much helping us live." His lips contorted, twisted downwards into an ugly sneer. "Yer clan kids don't even know how hard it is to get into the Academy without being in a prestigious family."

Naruto and Komatsu didn't have the energy to correct him. Sasuke looked ready to snap his neck.

"Wh-Why are you the doctor?" Komatsu almost whispered, looking up at the other boy.

His eyes grew downcast and drifted towards a portrait on the wall. Komatsu gulped. "Me Ma just couldn't keep goin'… Two years ago, after Pa left, she—she…" He shook his head and glared at them with renewed vigor. "Point is, y'all ninja ain't done nothin' to help!" He rummaged through his kimono before slamming a scroll in front of the trio. "Go on, go to our precious Hokage and take your damn cash. That's all yer here for anyway." When they hesitated, he boomed, "Go!"

And as they exited, hearts heavy, Komatsu heard his breathing quicken and choked sobs escape. She glanced to Naruto, whose head remained hanging limply and Sasuke, whose eyes were glassed over once more. So in a surge of maternal instinct, she coughed and caught their attention. "W-We've got some time before we have to get back to Kakashi-sensei." She held up a kunai. "Training?"

Both smiled widely (or as widely as Sasuke could).


"Uwa! Is this for us Komatsu-chan?" Naruto loomed over her -as much as he could at any rate- fingers wiggling and nose just above the box's surface. "It looks so good!"

Komatsu twisted away, tensing her leg. It would be impolite to kick him. "Um, yeah... they're for you and Sasuke-kun." Sasuke finally looked up in interest. "B-But training first," she told him, handing over the cargo. "D-Do you want yours too, Sasuke-kun?" She held it out to him, arms trembling.

He grimaced, but gave a curt nod and accepted it. Komatsu felt an overwhelming sense of lightness in both her hands and chest. She gave him a small smile, fragile and shaking before realising he couldn't even see it. Her cheeks flushed; God she hated herself.

"Thanks," he muttered, taking it. "You know how to do anything else but feed us?" He asked, although not as unkindly as she would have thought. "Oi. Dobe," Naruto's ears pricked up, which he immediately smacked for giving the other boy a response. "Did you say thank you?"

Naruto scuffed his shoes against the ground, grumbling out a no. "Thank you, Komatsu-chan," he mumbled, shoving it in his bag. "Now, you're gonna teach us! Right?" His eyes gleamed and Komatsu felt she was finally realising just what it was she'd agreed to.

"Er, right." The training ground was empty luckily, so she approached the tallest tree she could find, urging the others to follow. "So, um, tree climbing's a really simple chakra control exercise—"

"Chakra? What's that?" Naruto knit his brows together and Komatsu blinked. "What?"

"Um, well, Naruto-kun, chakra is…" She made several hand gestures, as if they could explain everything. Instead, she crouched and stuck her kunai into the dirt, drawing an outline of the human body. "Chakra's everywhere in everything—that lives, anyway. So, um, it's the reason we can do jutsu." Her mouth ran dry when she looked up, finding Naruto staring intensely. Was she doing a good job? Did he understand or was she confusing him even more? She made an effort to open her mouth but she found her kunai now drawing jagged, bumpy lines rather than the smooth curves of before. "There're two types of energy…I think."

"Physical and spiritual," Sasuke offered, arms folded and peering down at the two smugly.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun, you're, um, probably better at this than me. You were top rookie, right? So can you, uh, help?" She puffed her cheeks out, tilting her weight back to sit cross legged. "You'll do a much better job."

Sometimes, all Sasuke needed was a bit of coaxing and flattery, Komatsu quickly realised. His ego had become so inflated it responded easily. Komatsu cocked her head to one side as he explained the intricacies of chakra and its flow through the human body. Naruto put two fingers to his veins, peering down as if to catch a glimpse of his own energy. When he finished, the blond fell silent, gazing at the raven-haired boy with a mixed expression. Impressed, but indignant.

Just like her grandmother, she noted.

"Come on, is that it?" Naruto groaned, bounding to his feet. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon! Now I know what chakra is, I'm gonna ace this, dattebayo!" He took a running start at the tree, only to once again fall on his head.

"She didn't say anything yet, dobe." Sasuke kicked him out of the way, clearing the way for a demonstration. He folded his arms and tapped his foot, gesturing. "Just show him, he won't get it if you use long words," he said haughtily.

Komatsu frowned (she could do it beneath her scarf, a blessing in disguise of necessity perhaps?) but made her way to the tree regardless, running her hand along the bark. Not too bumpy, no stumps. It would do.

"You need to direct your chakra to your feet," she told them, tapping one foot against the trunk experimentally. "And keep it balanced." Another foot and she was now at a ninety degree angle to the tree. "I-If you do this, you, um, can," Now came the hard part. "—you can walk on, well, uh, anything really." She took careful steps, unwilling to fall in front of her squad. Once she walked the length of the tree, she dropped onto one of the lower branches, hanging by her feet upside down. "It's a good vantage point for scouting." She drew a kunai from her pouch and carved a line. "Try and get to, um, here. We should go higher when sensei is here, I think." Sasuke scoffed and Naruto harrumphed.

No way were they listening to that.


"Naruto-kun, you're using too much chakra, I think." Komatsu pet the now cracked tree; she had brought upon it much abuse. "And I think, maybe, you're not using enough Sasuke-kun," she advised from her perch, curled up with her knees below her chin. From so far up she could afford to breathe and let her scarf droop that little bit. She wasn't sure the two boys would have heard her otherwise. "B-But, good work! Y-you're picking it up quicker than me!" She added hastily in response to the dead eye she received.

"I'm never getting this!" Naruto stomped, fists clenched. "What is all this balancing crap?! I'm focusing my chakra, I am!" His kunai had not come near Komatsu's mark and it infuriated him so.

"Shut up and let me focus!"

And Sasuke wasn't that far ahead.

"Come on, let's um, take a break," Komastu soothed, jumping to the ground and smoothing out her clothing. "Y-You've only been doing it for a few hours—be happy with the progress you've made!" It pained her lips, throat and lungs to talk so loudly, in such a high pitch—so happily. Wait, why was her voice so clear? Her hand rushed to her scarf, and before Sasuke could ask, "What's that?" she tugged it back up to her nose. "Lunch, Naruto-kun?" She asked, brushing past Sasuke after refusing to meet his gaze. Naruto cheered, punching the air, the day's events seemingly rolled off his back.

"Uwa, what is it, Komatsu-chan?! I bet it's amazing!" Naruto took the box in his trembling hands, plonked to the ground, ripped open the lid. He began to vacuum dumplings into his mouth and hurriedly stuffing his face with the accompanying rice. "I was right!" He proclaimed, muffled by his full mouth.

"Hn, we'll see." Sasuke took his own, and eyeing Komatsu warily, took a bite. "Hn." Another. "Could be better," he muttered, onto his third. Komatsu didn't touch hers, letting Naruto leap for seconds. Instead, she focused on not meeting Sasuke's eyes whenever he glanced her way. "Where did you learn that?" Komatsu forced her neck to crane towards him. "Tree walking, I mean."

Because if Sasuke didn't know it, no one did, obviously. Komatsu restrained herself from scoffing.

"My grandmother," she replied, twisting blades of grass beneath her fingers. "She insisted. I started a few months ago." She was surprised it hadn't begun earlier honestly. Silence reigned while Naruto picked at the last of his (Komatsu's) lunch and Komatsu fiddled with her scrolls to fill time. Just as the blond fell back onto the grass with a satisfied sigh, the squad heard a whistle from behind them.

"So, this is where my cute little team went." Kakashi appeared in a cloud of smoke, hands on hips. "And here I thought you'd been eaten by wild boars."

"Thanks for your concern," Sasuke replied flatly. "We completed the mission," he added as an afterthought. "And our client was an ass," he finished rather more deliberately.

"Well we're not here to make friends." Kakashi looked up at the trees that currently sheltered them, or rather, the gashes made in each, one noticeably higher than the others. His eyes scanned his team, unsure who to credit. Komatsu had displayed the skill earlier, but if Sasuke caught the basics quickly enough, he would surely surpass her. He decided against saying anything and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Come on younglings, if we don't hand in our report we don't get paid." The very real alarm present in their faces caused his eye to twitch.

"Well what are we waiting for?!" Naruto took off in a sprint towards the bustling village below, Sasuke not far behind.

"You idiot! I'm the one with the mission scroll!"

Komatsu looked to Kakashi, who gave her a nose crinkle. She flushed and started off behind them, quietly motivated by the prospect of telling Iruka about her day. Not that he'd want to hear, she reminded herself.

"Repeat it, girl. Tell the truth."

She skidded to a stop, just behind Sasuke. "Have to wait till they're finished," he whispered, pointing to a team of mask clad shinobi inside the mission room.

"No one cares. No one wants to know."

She tugged at her hood as Iruka grinned at Naruto while he recounted their day gaily, complete with interpretive dance and actions. Komatsu wilted.

He doesn't care.

"This is the first step in me becoming Hokage, dattebayo!" He exclaimed as they stepped outside, money clutched in their grubby hands. Iruka chuckled, patting him on the shoulder.

Kakashi sighed, rubbing his temple. "Same time tomorrow…team."

Naruto gladly led the way to Ichiraku ramen for Iruka and the two said their goodbyes. Sasuke rolled his eyes and pocketed his envelope, turning to leave.

"Thought you lived this way," he snipped.

Komatsu bowed to Kakashi in farewell and hurried to fall in step with the Uchiha.

"That wasn't an invitation."

What is there to know?

She entered the dimly lit flat clutching her pay tightly. Sat in an armchair, tea in one hand and a paperback novel in the other, Tadako sat.

"Welcome home, dear. I hope you had a good day," she said pleasantly, not looking up from her book. "Feel free to pour yourself a cup. But hurry off to bed, I'm sure you'll have an early start tomorrow too." Komatsu bowed and began to take her leave when a bony hand beckoned her. "Wait, sweetheart, let me take a look at you." She gripped her cheeks between her fingers, rubbing her wounds with her thumb. "Oh, Ko-chan I'm so sorry. I'll make sure to get some ointment for you tomorrow. Those nasty bruises will be gone soon, don't you worry." And her smile was so sincere and the kiss on the forehead so heartfelt, Komatsu melted into the embrace.

There's nothing to know, because nothing is wrong.

Holy shit? 5321 words not including AN? Okay well probably deserved since I haven't updated bu l. Hope yall are happy with this mega chapter but we're gonna take a break from Squad Seven next chapter. It's time for… the Wildcard Squad. That's right, Sakura is not forgotten and is going to debut next chapter in her new team, new life and hopefully more useful self.

Reviews are love. Reviews are life.

P.S. also going to go back and clean up some things soon in earlier chapters, especially AN. This story is taking a decidedly different direction than I realised.

So yay? I hope it's yay.