Update!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto at all.
As Lee raced through Konoha in search of Kakashi, rationality eventually won the war with raw emotion.
Lee decided to do things by the book, and veered to head to the Hokage Tower. Messenger birds were usually very concise and efficient where deliveries were concerned, but there were some cases of strays.
The standard procedure for a ninja who had received someone else's message was to deliver the note to one of the Hokage's assistants. The message would eventually reach the Hokage's desk.
Lee planned to take this one up personally.
As a lowly Genin, Lee wasn't exactly guaranteed audience with Tsunade. The Fire Shadow was constantly busy with one matter or another, and it was no secret that she spent her spare hours with a sake bottle for a friend.
Lee could only hope that he didn't catch Tsunade drunk, or worse; hung over.
The boy finally reached the door of the Hokage Mansion. He felt sluggish; although he was still faster than most of his peers, Kakashi's seal had placed him in a position where he could put all of his effort into running and get no results.
It wasn't very youthful at all.
The boy shook his secondary concerns from his mind, and pushed through the heavy wooden door. He was slightly ashamed to have prioritized his training above the well-being of his teammates, but dismissed the thought.
Lee had decided that he would need to speak very forwardly with the Hokage; he knew that he would have to be incredibly clear with Tsunade, regardless of her blood alcohol content.
He had just gotten out of the infirmary, and he knew that the Hokage wouldn't send him off too readily.
It would take some convincing, but Lee knew that he was a charming guy.
Inside the building, Shizune was bustling around the lobby, which she seemed to have commandeered. The dark-haired girl glanced up at the sound of the door, with a tired face.
Lee was immediately daunted by Shizune's appearance. If the spry, young assistant was like this, then the considerably older Hokage was…
Shizune confirmed his fears with a put-on smile. "Hello, Lee-kun. How may I hel—"
"I need to find Tsunade-sama." Lee interrupted, regretting the breech of manners immediately. "S-sorry, Shizune-san." Lee said, bowing twice.
"That's okay, Lee." Shizune replied, smiling at his politesse. Her countenance darkened again a moment later: "I'm afraid that Tsunade is… otherwise disposed at the moment."
Lee nodded, not wanting to press the issue. Shizune seemed stressed enough.
"I've got this note. I found it a little while ago, strapped to a stray messenger bird." Lee waved the slip of paper around, before handing it to the Hokage's assistant.
Shizune's dark eyes flitted over the paper, and she grimaced.
"I'm afraid I don't have the clearance to put together a rescue team…" Seeing Lee's crestfallen face, Shizune pulled up a compromise. "But I can call up the ninja that I'm sure Tsunade would send."
Lee grinned widely, throwing up his 'nice guy' pose for good measure. "That would be wonderful. Thank you, Shizune-sama."
Tsunade allowed her glass to hover over her desk for a moment. A thick ring of moisture had pooled where the glass had been set, and the Hokage was thankful for the waterproof finish that had been applied to the sturdy piece of craftsmanship.
It was quite a desk.
Tsunade was the fifth to fill it, and had to carry all the responsibilities that came with the territory. The Fifth Hokage considered, very briefly, whether she was living up to the four brilliant shinobi who had sat behind this desk in times past.
She wandered if she was living up to the legacy of her grandfather.
The Godaime Hokage leaned back into her chair, and let the pale contents of her glass spill into her throat. The alcohol—some foreign wine from the Land of Glaciers—burnt her throat, and brought tears to her eyes.
Tsunade wiped the moisture from her tightly clenched eyes, and cursed when she opened them again.
Her golden-brown eyes had found their way to that picture again.
Of course.
All of her drinking sessions as of late had been unpleasant.
Tsunade wasn't usually one to drink her sorrow away; but then she never seemed to need an excuse to get hammered.
Recently, however…
The Godaime leaned forward to retrieve the framed photograph from the corner of her desk. Three young Genin stared back at her from behind framed glass.
They were the three young Genin who would grow into splendid Ninja.
They were the three young Genin who would grow to become the Legendary Sannin.
Tsunade let her thumb glide over Jiraiya's two-dimensional cheek, with tears streaming down her face that were hotter than the alcohol had been.
And then Shizune stepped in, with pressing matters stamped into a stack of documents.
It was time to be brave. It was now, at times like this, that Tsunade knew she could make her Grandfather believe in her, the same way the entire population of Konoha believed in her.
She would give them something to believe in.
Tsunade wiped her tears discreetly, filled with hope and wine.
"Hello, Shizune," the Hokage greeted, hating the slur in her voice.
"Tsunade-sama." Shizune replied, still slightly embarrassed by her master's drunkenness.
The Hokage noticed the little note that was placed on top of the pile of paperwork, and raised a questioning eyebrow. Tsunade snatched the paper before Shizune could even set the stack down.
"And what's this?"
Shizune didn't answer, choosing instead to let Tsunade read the note for herself. Golden eyes searched the paper, taking longer to read it in her drunken state.
Tsunade's grimace deepened. Fewer and fewer missions had been accepted by Konohagakure as of late; with the very real threat that Otogakure presented, ninja had to stay to protect their home.
The gears began to whir within Tsunade's highly-tactical mind.
Shizune must have noticed. "I've already prepared a team. All you have to do is give the go-ahead." The assistant stated, sliding another, more official looking paper which held a list of names.
Tsunade slid a slender finger down the list, skimming through the miniature biographies of the selected ninja.
Two of the names listed belonged to Yuri Kurenai and Hatake Kakashi. Kurenai was a very logical choice; she was the local genjutsu expert.
Tsunade informed her assistant that Kakashi was recovering from a chakra drain.
Beneath the names of those Jounin lay two more. They were Haruno Sakura and Kato Shizune.
Shizune explained: "Whatever caused Tenten-san to ignore protocol and send this message in place of her sensei, it must be serious enough to warrant a skilled medi-nin.
Tsunade nodded. "I need you here; Sakura can go. Kakashi can be replaced by… Asuma." With a few confident penstrokes, the list had been revised.
The Hokage's Seal of Approval stopped in its arc a mere inch from the paper.
Tsunade twitched.
Rock Lee's name had been written in the bottom right corner, in a distinctly different script. Tsunade directed a searing gaze at her assistant.
"He was adamant. I'm sorry, Hokage-sama."
Tsunade grinned peacefully, and stood on wobbly legs. The alcohol still hadn't worn off, it seemed.
"We'll just have to go talk to Lee-kun about it, won't we?"
Rock Lee was waiting patiently. He tightened his grip on the arm of the couch he was sitting on, and wished he could be as cool as the leather furniture.
Tsunade eventually descended down the flight of steps that led to higher floors. Golden eyes locked with black ones.
Lee gulped.
Sakura grimaced.
Kakashi grinned.
"Lee!" Tsunade stormed over to where the boy sat. "Have you been bullying my assistant!?"
The taijutsu specialist leaned back into the leather couch, petrified.
"You can't go on any missions in your state!" Tsunade had leaned forward, and was hovering mere inches from Lee's face. "You aren't at full capacity! I can't believe that an honest boy like you would try to trick your Hokage into…"
"Tsunade-sama." A new voice interrupted the Fire Shadow's rant.
Tsunade wheeled around to face Kakashi. "What is it!?"
Kakashi's face was drawn into a sickly sweet smile. "Lee didn't sign his name onto your paper, I did. He will be a valuable asset."
"Yes, but an asset that I would rather have stay in Konoha for the time being." Tsunade stood defiantly before the copy-cat nin, daring Kakashi to make a move.
The silver-haired Jounin laid his cards on the table.
"I've known Maito Gai for…" Kakashi briefly considered. "…quite some time now. If his student had to send for help, then he is in serious danger."
Kakashi cleared his throat, preparing to wade through a sensitive subject.
"Given Lee's relationship with his teacher, I had imagined that you were willing to show some lenience."
Lee watched, still terrified, as Tsunade's demeanor softened slightly. "I'm sorry, Kakashi. I cannot allow either of you to go." With a flare of her hand, the Hokage sent a low-level assistant to find Asuma.
"As you wish, Hokage-sama."
Tsunade decided to see this team of shinobi to the gates of Konoha personally. Kakashi had given up far too easily.
Asuma finally arrived at the Hokage Tower. The rejected ninja had already left.
Five ninja walked down to the Konoha Gates. Tsunade, Shizune, Asuma, Kurenai, and Sakura walked in silence.
As expected, Kakashi and Lee were waiting by the village gates. Unexpected, however, was the fact that both men seemed unsurprised to see the Hokage accompanying the team that they couldn't join.
"Hokage-dono," Kakashi cried when the party drew near, "Please allow us to go to help Team Gai!"
Tsunade responded in an almost lazy, bored tone. "If either of you so much as steps outside these gates, you will be recorded in the Bingo Book and marked a Missing Nin."
"No! Anything but that! Terrible!" Kakashi voiced his displeasure at a volume that would have made Gai jealous. The white-haired shinobi began to race around Tsunade, looking increasingly like a chicken with its head cut off.
Lee was calmer. He simply stood there, without movement.
Tsunade wheeled around to slam a firm fist into Kakashi's gut. The Jounin winced, and keeled over onto his knees.
As the Hokage turned back to gaze at the world beyond Konoha's gates, she noticed that Lee was gone.
Shizune was trying to help Kakashi up, blushing like a schoolgirl all the while.
Tsunade's voice was hard and cold; a perfect match for her next words.
"Shizune-san. Retrieve the Bingo Book."
But why, Tsunade?
Oh well! Review! vote! I love you all!
Also; LeeSaku is literally one vote away from a tie with LeeTen. If you want to see it happen, make it happen!
[Dominater461- Haha, glad you liked it. Trying to insert a little bit of comic relief here and there, but not too much.
Thanks for the review, bro.]
[Raistlin99- Yeah, I can't imagine Gai's pain at the moment. He's tough, that's for sure. I've tried to write him to show that he has nothing to lose, and is fighting desperately.
I kinda feel bad for Tenten. All that male attention.
Hey, no problem there. Lee can move faster than time when he wants to. ;)]
VOOTE! REVIIEIW!