Authors note:
Hey guys...Sorry this is soooooo late but we had to have a break...it is after all it is half way through the story. Thanks to everyone who has supported the story by reading, reviewing or even thinking about reading/reviewing it.
So please enjoy, sorry about the shorter chapter...it is hard getting restarted...
We don't own Naruto.
"Italics" is for flashbacks
"Do we seriously have to do this."
"Yes. After all it was that lazy genius's idea."
Currently Naruto, Sasuke, Sai, Kakashi and Sakura were standing in front of a small run down old shack covered in moss and twisting vines. Steam rose from the back of the house indicating a small fire was on the inside, making the group of bushrangers (plus one captive) jealous while standing the freezing cold night air. Frost covering the ground sent shivers up their spines as they stood contemplating who should disturb this hermit that Sasuke clearly did not want to see.
Sakura's eyes wandered over the group; apart from the shivering and clenching of the horses reigns, there was no indication of true distaste for this hermit they were talking about. She narrowed the thought down to the fact that this person must be an ally of these bushrangers...if that was the case why were they hesitant to proceed into the warmth.
"Sasuke?"
"Hn." Sasuke grunted, not paying attention but rather glaring at Kakashi who was eyeing his novel packed away in his pouch.
"Why are we standing out here?"
"Hn."
Kakashi's hand inched dangerously close towards the novel, Sasuke was now leaning forward towards the teasing man. You could see the tension build between the two of them.
"I need to get this book out...You see...there is a person..." Kakashi reasoned as he noticed Sasuke's glare.
BANG!
The door slammed open and steam rushed out from the inside of the hut and met the cold air with a blast before condensing on the ground. Sakura squinted as she could vaguely see the outline of a person who was causally walking forward towards them. From what she could see, this person had long hair. As she watched; the figure came closer and closer, a man was stood in all his naked glory at the door. He laughed as he saw the bushrangers shivering outside, eyes widened at the sight.
"HAHAHAHA...Kakashi, Sasuke! It's been a while!" The man placed his hands on his hips.
"Hey...look Dickless..." Sai whispered to Naruto. Naruto glanced up and paled at the sight...
"HEY PERV PUT SOME CLOSE ON!" Naruto screamed at the man while trying his best to cover a gawking Sakura's eyes.
"Kid! What is so wrong with what I am wearing!"
"It's not what you are wearing...IT'S WHAT YOU ARE NOT WEARING!" Naruto argued back getting more and more into the fight with the hermit.
"Kid...you have guts!" said the strange hermit. "Say you look a lot like one of my old apprentices, and you act just like him..."
"YEAH! I get that a lot!" Naruto humphed and removed his hands from Sakura's face. Storming towards the hermit.
"Naruto, back off...if your going to continue to behave like this, I'll have to send you off with the others. Jiraiya...please put some clothes on." Sasuke sighed. Sakura now realised why Sasuke was more than reluctant...he was having to deal with a second Naruto, who was seriously too old to be a bushranger and had survived.
Sakura, watched intently as the man put his billy on the fire and turned to face them. They were standing around a small table waiting for Jiraiya to start a conversation.
"Tea?" He asked casually as he caught a hold of the tension floating in the air.
"Hn."
"Still as quiet as ever. I see, both of you haven't changed in the years since I last saw you. Back then you were on a mission to try and run away from the constraints of that village..."
Jiraiya leaned over the steaming billy and poured the water into cups that were broken and cracked. He walked over to the table and proceeded to hand out the tea and sat down at the head of the table. The bushrangers followed suit and sat around the oval shaped table. Sakura watched as everyone except Sai shifted uncomfortably under the gaze of the elder man.
"Tell me. You must be Sakura. I heard rumors that you were kidnaped. Do tell me, how is Tsunade?"
"Stressed last time I saw her, which was about 6 months ago." Sakura mumbled.
"Kidnapping? I never though that was your style Sasuke. Is that why you are here?"
"Not quite." Sasuke mumbled into the cup, glaring at its content.
"We are on the run." Stated Naruto while trying to push a curious Sai off him, who kept trying to compare their guns.
"So tell me exactly what happened."
"Sasuke, should we tell him..." Sakura asked gently.
"Hn." He took a deep breath in and then back out again.
"I already know that you kidnaped Sakura, and you are on the run after you joined up with the other team of bushrangers...so I suggest that you fill me in on the rest so I know what I am getting in to." Jiraiya urged the lead bushranger.
"Fine." Sasuke eyed his other team-mates as they sat hunched over Kakashi's shoulder trying to understand why he enjoyed those novels he reads so fascinating.
"After being with that 'other group' as you put it, we had finally made ourselves comfortably with more people on the team. You remember the weapons and animal shop and our informer?"
Jiraiya nodded.
"Well...they decided to join us and informed us that we were being chased once again..."
"It would be best for the survival of the bushrangers group you have going on here."
"Hn."
"Since you have a person from their village, they will not stop until they have Sakura back; that includes crossing territories and I bet the Akatsuki are planning something right now."
"...We decided it would be best for us to split up. There have been three groups formed. One of which is us...we decided it would be best if we came to you, not only for protection but for training..."
"A group of us will have to head out to Jiraiya's place and they will have to take Sakura with them since she is the most vulnerable out of all of us..." TenTen pointed out.
"That also cancels out Sasuke..." Kankuro chimed in from his position next to Gaara "Since he is only one of us who knows the way..."
"Actually I do as well...just pointing it out...since no one listens to me anyway." Kakashi added.
Naruto turned to gasp at the elder bushranger, completely shocked that his friends were going to be on a single team.
"Fine! I bags on that team as well." Naruto pouted, determined to gain a position with his best mates.
"...After much squabbling and brawls between most of us, we had finally reached a decision..."
"Team one...Consisting of Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, Sai and Kakashi...will head out to that old perv's hideout. You are the only ones who know of his hideout in this group and you have a knuckle-head and the painter to help you protect Sakura." Anko ordered from her spot on Kakashi's lap.
"Team two...Gaara, Hinata and Ino. They will head out and act a civilians in the local village...make sure to change your appearances but not so much so that we can't contact you. Since your the youngest ones left I want you safe." She glared at Naruto who started to complain about not having his girlfriend on his team and had to be stuck with an 'emotionless bastard' .
"Team three. I will head this one with Temari and Kankuro as backup. We will be tracking the Akatsuki's every move, we will also keep an eye out on that village of yours...this will be the most challenging but I am sure you will be up for a bit of excitement." She grinned madly at her new partners and they confirmed her ideas by following suit, letting out grins of their own.
"...That's what happened pretty much." Sasuke summed up.
He felt a slight weight on his shoulder. He turned his head only to be met with a mop of pink hair. Shifting his weight slightly to get more comfortable in his awkward predicament, he wasn't use to close contact (let alone a female sleeping on him). He glanced around the room and noticed most of the people were also asleep. Jiraiya had dozed off with his face in the cup, Naruto was snoring (head lolling from side to side), Sai's head was tilted ever so slightly, Kakashi was reading his novel.
Sasuke mentally punched himself for not realising that these idiots couldn't care less about what happened to them. He looked down once more. The pinkette snuggled closer in her sleep, unknowingly moving closer to the source of warmth. Making sure that no one was looking, he let a small smile grace his face as before joining the rest of the group in the dream world away from the harshness of their reality.