My Path that Loops 26

"-and so we finished by taking out the head bandit with a combo attack." Sasuke crowed proudly.

I nodded. "You and Sakura?"

Sakura blushed to the side and nodded slowly. "It was nothing really."

I laughed and motioned with my hand for her to continue. "Please, continue. This is pretty interesting." It was really just a good way to pass the time. We were travelling at my pace. Or rather, we were travelling at a civilian pace. If I had used my normal method, I would have Kakashi and Sakura scout ahead and place transportation seals and jump to them. But, for the sake of appearances, I decided to walk.

It was actually nice to stretch my legs. My old muscles from traveling as the Tabinin helped a lot, so I wasn't as tired. But, I kept my attentions on the stories for Team 7. They sure had a lot of them. Most of their tales were flamboyant and a bit exaggerated but I knew they were somewhat true. I had Shin break into the mission records and steal some files. The gennin team section was terribly vulnerable. I had read through Team 7's mission reports a while back. They had gone on quite the number of A-ranks, through no fault of their own.

It was simply coincidence.

Though I feel the fingerprints of the Hokage on these missions. The missions would have some back drop, some background detail that would make it complicated. These missions would always be bumped up to A-rank, just after it was impossible to back down from the mission. All signs leading towards an influencing hand. While I agreed with Hokage on Naruto's ability to handle high pressure situations, I was more worried about Sakura and Sasuke.

But, it seems they were stabilized by Naruto's and Kakashi's presence. Speaking of Kakashi, he was hanging in the back reading his novel. I had passed him the newest script from Jiraiya. Kakashi took to it gleefully. But, I think the best part of this trip was spending time with Naruto. Sure we talked and ate dinner together, but we weren't really there. Just getting away from Konoha, from the Hokage, from Danzo, and from all my underhanded plots made things quiet.

"Really," I asked with eyebrows raised. "how did you get pass the guards?" I looked over to Naruto for an answer.

Naruto smiled and unfurled a weathered seal scroll. "You always said that Speech is vibrations in the air right. So I thought of a wind Jutsu to vibrate the air and mimic voice."

I grasped the scroll and looked it over. The seal structure was based in Heiko. I nodded to myself. Heiko was theoretically a good sealing language for this kind of seal. Heiko was a language that required equilibrium, or balance. So whenever energy is put in, an equal force must be put out. It was terrible for storing things but great for manipulating minute amount of chakra since it allowed fine tune control. The seal would take in normal chakra and be sent through the seal. It looked like it waited about a minute or so before activating. It would create folds according to the seal structure. Now why would he do that? I looked up at Naruto who was looking at me expectantly. Guess he was going to let me figure it out.

I looked down at the seal structure again. The folds had to be balanced out somehow. And he said wind jutsu. Naruto used chakra to create folds. And it would need to move into the air. Ah, he talked about vibrations in the air. I nodded to myself. "So, you use the seal structure to bend the chakra where necessary and how you want it. Then you let the seal unwind itself but use this seal." I pointed to the seal to the end. "Some kind of wind jutsu to push it out as sound."

Naruto nodded, his smile went wide. "Yep. It gets really loud since that's Fuuton Daippo."

I pursed my lips. It would certainly work as a distraction. But it felt awfully wasteful to push the folds through the jutsu. "Wouldn't it create distortion in the voice?"

Naruto flushed and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, it comes all worldly."

Sasuke chimed in. "It was really funny the first time he heard it." He spoke loudly and slowly. "WE AAAAREE HEEEEEEERRREE TOOO AAAAARRREEEESSSSSSSSTTTT YOOOOOOUUUUUU" He drawled out.

I chuckled as Naruto elbowed Sasuke in the ribs. "Let me take a look." I placed my hand on the seal and allowed an expansion seal to form on my palm. Normally, I would have to write on an entirely different scroll to expand the inner workings of a compressed seal, but my Ink replication seal was invaluable for tasks like this.

Naruto dashed over and stared with wide eyes. "Wait. How are you expanding the seal without any paper? Isn't the compression supposed to enclose the Inner seal structure?"

"What?" Sasuke blinked, walking over.

I chuckled and started to explain. "Naruto means that Seals, when they're compressed are supposed to protect from tampering or disruption. It takes a special seal to uncompress them, so you can edit them."

Sasuke clasped his hands behind his head. "So why would need to compress seals like this? Wouldn't it be a hassle to open them up all the time?"

I nodded. "Of course, but there are some practical reasons. You don't want to show anyone the full workings of your seal, or anyone with a basic knowledge of sealing could just break it. It adds a layer of security. Also, compression protects against overriding. There are a lot of things that can disrupt the functionality of a seal." I nodded to Sakura. "Like blood in a surgery."

Sakura blinked "Oh!" She perked up. "I read about this. Diagnosis seals are placed on large scrolls to go on the patient. But, we can't laminate the seals because they need skin contact. So, I heard about compression to protect the seal against any bodily fluids."

I nodded again. "That's correct." I turned to Sasuke. "It also is just more convenient. Ink takes up space." I winked.

"Neh. Nii-san." Naruto tugged on my sleeve. His eyes were excited, looking at my hand. He had noticed the Ink running along it. "How are you doing that? Is it a conversion seal mixed in with an elemental seal?"

I snorted. "I wish." Elemental seals were a dime in a dozen. I also hadn't figured out to make a stable, flexible one either. The best I could do was create the basic element and that was it. "No," I explained. "This is a storage seal mixed with a conversion, plus isolation on top."

Naruto blinked. He stared at it and looked up. "You store ink on your body? Don't you have to refill?"

I shook my head. "I would have to charge the ink then. I store my blood and lots of water."

Sakura whipped her head around so fast I thought she was going to get whiplash. "What!" Sakura dashed over. She peered closely at the ink on my skin. "That's…" She gasped. "That's charged blood. But, how are you?"

I shook my head. "By pints. By pints. Blood replenishes. Chakra with Ink is fine, but nothing beats blood with chakra as conduits." There was a reason why the most sensitive seals used blood. Chakra was meant to flow through the veins.

Naruto grinned. "You think you can give me that Nii-san? It'll be really cool to-"

I rolled my eyes. "No way Naruto. It's way too dangerous. You haven't even graduated from Overloading Seals yet." I had talked to Jiraiya about Naruto's progress and looked over Naruto's seals in my new found free time.

I was impressed at how Naruto had gotten, but a little worried about what he was doing.

The kid was a mad scientist. He was combining seals with a reckless abandon and didn't properly contain his seals. It was why most of them blew up… in his face.

At least the kid was smart enough to have a safe zone and use clones to test, but he needed to go back to the best practices of containing seals. I looked back at the seal in my hands and hummed. "So, See here Naruto." I pointed to a part of the seal. "This is causing chakra to flow through a bottleneck. It's causing a compression that distorts the waves." I explained.

I continued to explain Naruto the deficiencies in his seal. There weren't many, but the ones that were there caused some leaks. And, it was a damn frustrating to look for these leaks. You would always experience them at the worst times and would only find out about them after the seal ran. If you were lucky, you could detect the chakra leaking on activation, but that was rare.

I shuddered at the thought. Luckily, I threw a bunch of chakra nets into my seals, making sure to catch all the leak chakra and redirect them to their proper places.

We continued on a sedate pace. Naruto had run off to train with Sasuke. They were tossing blunted kunai back and forth. Well, it was more like guiding them back and forth. One would throw the kunai at the other. The receiver would guide the kunai and use the momentum to throw it back. It had a lot of hand eye coordination. What really blew me away was Sakura, who had taken it upon herself to join the fray. Except, she was in the middle of the two, dodging the kunai. She would add her own in the mix from time to time, but instead of tossing them back, she would aim to catch them.

"They always train like this?" I asked Kakashi, whose nose was in his book.

Kakashi shrugged. "Only when they're bored. They tend to come up with interesting ways of training themselves. I prefer sparring over drills like this." Kakashi hummed.

I nodded and shoved my hands into my pocket. I wondered who would come greet me a Wave. I had sent the time and place through my old contacts. It had been a quick and relatively painless operation. Pass a note through Akio and then up to the Capitol. It only took a few passphrases for each of the messengers to confirm my validity of my message. I had received a message through one of the incoming traders. He had asked to deliver a package for Yasu, my small investment company.

That sprung warning bells in my head and I took a peek. Sure enough, a confirmation from Mei that the meeting would be set up. It was ironic that I had better relations with foreign entities compared to my 'allies' in Konoha. There was less bullshitting going on and a lot more directness. Well, I guess politics were politics. Now if I could just-

I felt a pulse in my neck. It was a sharp swipe to the right, like a kunai brushing against the back of my neck.

Blade

I hunched my shoulders and leaned towards Kakashi. Kakashi moved slightly towards me and hunched up a miniscule amount. "Don't be too alarmed, but we have a tag along."

Kakashi didn't even skip a beat. "One of yours?"

"Shin. I asked him to watch over Team 7." I said. "I could have him show himself if you would like?"

Kakashi turned a page on his book. "No, if we run into any trouble. Let my team handle it. It would be good to see them gain more experience."

I raised an eyebrow. "More experience than they already have?"

Kakashi turned slightly. "Combat experience is always welcome. Though, I don't think we'll be expecting any trouble. Will we?"

I shook my head. "Not expecting any. Supposed to be a meeting with some locals. Maybe a tourist or two."

Kakashi nodded. "Well. I'll relax then."

I nodded and pulsed chakra into my back. I activated my seal and simply pulsed it once. Wait.

I felt a pulse back and continued following the rest of team 7. I watched Naruto pause. He turned ever so slightly towards the right, where Blade was sneaking through the trees. Interesting.

I took a note of it and continued on my way. There was no reason to make a scene.

It was near night when we finally neared the bridge. We could see it in the distance but it would take a half a day to reach it. The long walk relaxing, though my feet was starting to get a bit sore. I laid down against the tree, while Sakura and Sasuke ran around setting up camp. While crossing the bridge would be quick and simple, I decided to take my time. There was no reason to rush since my meeting with the Mist Representative would be tomorrow.

I was resting near a large boulder to the side. From my spot, I could watch as Sasuke gathered stray dry wood and Sakura mix the soup quietly. I had offered to help but Sakura said she was fine. I controlled my urge to help and let her take care of the rest. Naruto, on the other hand, was placing down detection seals. I had snagged a look at it and it was crude. Naruto's seals were based off charka spikes and pulses. Anything over a certain threshold would trigger and alert Naruto. It wasn't bad. It certainly got the job done, but it could be fooled or ignored entirely.

If someone was skilled enough, they could hide their chakra and ghost through the area with simple movement. Or if they were devious enough, could throw explosive tags inside the field and lure people into a trap. There were many work around to this kind of chakra sensing. My methods, back in Mizu, were a mixture of checks. First to check if chakra signature had entered, how large it was, speed it moved over time, and so on. It had taken a solid month to write, but it had been invaluable back in the war.

"And it's finally done!" Sakura said, sipping from a small bowl. She nodded and called to Sasuke and Naruto. "Come and get it guys!" She said. As she did so, she poured soup into a larger bowl the side, and wrapped some bread in a napkin. She set it off to one side near Kakashi's pack. It seemed that it was a common occurrence for Kakashi to not be with the team.

Naruto cheered and rushed over, bumping into Sasuke along the way. The rushed to grab their bowls and started pouring soup into their bowls. I got up and walked my way over. I sat down near the fire and unsealed my own travelling bowl.

"Here let me" Sakura said, snatching the bowl from my hands.

I blinked at her forcefulness but accepted the help anyways.

Sakura handed me a bowl of soup and I smiled. "Thanks."

"Of course." Sakura replied. She shoved a wrapped piece of bread in my hands and moved to get her own. I slurped it down the meal quickly, not touching the bread. After, I had some warm broth in my stomach, I poured some more in the bowl and walked back to where I was sitting before. I placed the bowl and bread to the side and took out my scroll. I started to over it and failed to notice my bowl and bread go missing. There was a whisper of a 'thanks'. And I shook my head. Shin probably forgot to bring food because he had rushed after me.

I leaned back and enjoyed the silence.

Well, that was until Naruto walked over and sat next to me. He leaned against me as he slurped his meal down. I chuckled and looked back up at the stars.

"Neh, Nii-san." Naruto said, wiping his mouth of the warm broth.

"What's up." I said, still looking up at the sky.

"I was wondering." He paused. "Where did you get that scar?" He reached over and tapped my hand.

I looked over and saw the very large scar in the middle of my palm. It was from the final fight in Mizu. I had desperately blocked a kunai with my palm and proceeded to shred man's body with my seal. I flipped my had order to look at my palm. The wound had healed well. Only an inch scar ran through across my hand.

It was my little souvenir.

"got it in a fight." I said.

"Oh" Naruto said quietly.

Too quiet. I looked over and he was staring at my hand. His eyes were focused and his fists were clenched. "Don't worry. That fight is over. Nothing is hanging over my head right now." I tried to ease him.

Naruto shook his head "No. That's not-"He sighed. "I know you were in a-" He rubbed the back of his head, frustrated. "When I saw all of you come home. You were all different. You got that look in your eyes I see Kakashi-sensei, Jiraiya-san, and even Hokage-jiji have. That look where you've been through the grinder." Naruto looked up at me. His eyes were sharp, determined. "And I don't like it."

"What don't you like?" I asked the obvious.

Naruto shrugged. "Not being able to help you. Not knowing what you're doing. Lots of things. I want to be there. I'm strong." Naruto clenched his fists. "I know I have still a long way to go. I know I can't do everything by myself. But I know I'm strong."

"You are." I smiled and wrapped my arm around him. I pushed his head into my chest, his hair tickled my chin. "I know you are Naruto."

I took a long deep breath. "there's somethings you need to keep a secret."

Naruto huffed. "Like the seal on my stomach?"

I hummed in acknowledgement. "Like the recipe for Ichiraku's Special Ramen."

Naruto gave a small chuckle at that.

I moved my other hand back and it bumped into an empty bowl. "Well, here's what we can do. I can tell you about my travels before I came to Konoha."

Naruto looked up. "really?"

I nodded. "I can tell you all the other seals masters I met. Not just Jiraiya."

Naruto smiled. "Tell me!"

I laughed and started to tell a couple stories about those crazy old bastards I knew.

"Finally" I said, as I saw the bridge in front of us. We could see the bridge in the distance and were almost free of the forest. We all walked side by side, with Blade tailing me quietly. Kakashi must have synched up with Blade, because Kakashi had mentioned doing some recon work with a very sharp Kunai.

I had rolled my eyes at him and moved along. I stifled a yawn and unscrewed the cap of my canteen. I took a long drink of my tea. Sasuke had shown me a neat trick to warm up water in enclosed objects. Apparently, seeping heat into the side would boil the inner liquid pretty quickly. I wrapped a small cloth around the canteen to stop the heat from burning my skin.

"So," I started. "We're going to need to stop by a couple places. Got plenty of places to be."

Kakashi nodded. "I assume you want us to help out the villages at a certain point?"

And leave me alone to go to my meeting? "Yes." I nodded. Kakashi understood how this worked.

I watched the gennins of Team 7 laugh in front of me. I didn't want them to be involved in any of this. I would have to keep everything quiet and make sure I 'slipped' away at the right time. Hopefully, Kakashi would sync up with me to make that happen. Now there was just a matter of-

I blinked. Why did I hear whistling?

"Get Down!" Kakashi yelled and I felt a chill down my spine. Someone grabbed me on the back and roughly shoved me down. The ground smacked the side of my face. Dirt and dry leaves flew into my face and I groaned.

What the hell? Kakashi's hand held onto my back firmly. But I pushed myself up to a somewhat kneeling position, as I wiped the dirt off my face. I wasn't worried, Kunai would call the others if we were truly in any danger. And I felt no pulse for the call in my seals.

I looked up and saw Team 7 with their weapons out and encircling me. Kakashi stood behind me. "Be careful." Kakashi growled. He released my back and reached for his forehead protector. I saw Team 7 stiffen in recognition. "This guy is on a whole other level. Stay back and I'll deal with this." He walked forward staring upwards.

Team 7 fell back and surrounded me completely, but I looked past them. I looked towards our attacker and chocked.

Standing on a large blade, with a Kiri headband worn proudly on his forehead, Zabuza grinned demonically at Kakashi. "So you're Sharingan Kakashi. Pleasure. But, I'll be taking the merchant over there."

What The Hell?! Zabuza. I screamed in my head. I stared at my old associate. He wore a dark black suit with fresh scarf around his neck. There was a scar that ran over his mouth. It apparently had healed quite well after the fight with Yagura. He was standing on his signature weapon. In any other situation, would be happy to see him. But, all I could scream in my head was…

What was he doing? Could he not just do this nicely? What. Come on!

Kakashi widened his stance. "I don't think so."

I tried to speak up, but Naruto growled. "You're only getting to him over my dead body." Chakra spiked out of him.

"Naruto no!" Kakashi ordered. Naruto stopped in his tracks. "Protect Toki. That is an order."

Zabuza laughed again and shook his head. "My, My. I don't think they'll have any time protecting him. If they have to deal with my team."

I stood up quietly and stared as three more shinobi appeared just below Zabuza.

They wore shiny Kiri headbands. Two of them had large swords on their back. One of them had needles in her hands.

I almost face palm at the incredulity of the situation. So, Zabuza had taken on Mangetsu, Suigetsu and Haku as his gennin team. They were far beyond gennin! I shook my head. I took a quick look into Zabuza's eyes. His eyes were glittering with delight, excitement but I could tell…

There was no malice in his eyes.

Well, not the killing kind. There was intent to cause pain. Intent to definitely main and hurt. But not to kill. I hoped he could control himself before things got out of control. I would let him have his fun for now, but if things got out of control I would have to bring in my own team.

Suigetsu licked his lips as he stared at Team 7. "heh heh. You guys look delicious. I'm going to have some fun!"

Sakura shivered but held her Kunai strong. Sasuke growled back and Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Nii-san." He whispered. "I think we're going to have to fully engage them. But, that means you'll be-"

"It's fine." I raised my voice. I stared at Suigetsu, who had taken out a kunai. I sent him a sharp look. His eyes flashed in a wince but her recovered quickly. "As long as you don't go too wild. Just leave a shadow clone next to me, and I'll be fine."

Suigetsu flipped over a Kunai to hold it in reverse grip. His thumb imperceptibly raised upwards. He slowly lowered his kunai into its holster and leaned forward.

"Ok-" Naruto started but he stopped as suddenly Suigetsu charged forwards his fists flying. His sword was in its sheath.

Mangetsu sighed and followed suit, engaging Sasuke in a quick spring. Sasuke was caught off guard and dodged backwards and away. Sakura stood in front of me, her shoulder tense. Haku walked slowly, methodically. She threw one senbon at Sakura. Sakura deflected it without blinking an eye.

I looked behind me and stepped backwards, to lean against a tree. I wanted to be out of the way. I felt a pulse on the back of my neck. Engage?

I sent a negative pulse back. There was no need. I would let things play out. Let them have their fun. Though, it would be nice to see Naruto in a combat situation. I felt kind of selfish, but it was better to have firsthand information.

Kakashi and Zabuza burst into action. They moved faster than I could track. But they also moved away. I started hearing loud clashes and roars farther away. Naruto was creating numerous shadow clones, three of them surrounded me in a defensive formation. I lost track of where the real one was, but most of them were relentlessly attacking Suigetsu.

Suigetsu was ducking and weaving with ease. He easily outmatched Naruto in Hand to hand combat, or at least it seemed like it. I knew Naruto was no slouch when it came to Taijutsu, but for him to lose to Suigetsu? That didn't seem right. Mei had probably trained them up when I had left. No, even still, Naruto shouldn't be losing this badly, judging by how many clones were exploding. Was Naruto planning something?

"Ack!" Sakura cried as she skidded backwards. The side of her face was red. Haku was still walking slowly forward. Her gait was calm and steady, as she continued to approach Sakura.

Sakura growled and started to throw Kunai. Several of them flung all over the place. The Shadow clones deflected a couple stray ones. They missed one of them, which landed mere inches above my head. I shook my head as I saw Haku show a flash of worry. It seems this fight wasn't part of their plan then. Sakura started weaving Genjutsu, which Haku was using brute chakra force to get rid of. I tapped my lip as I thought about situation.

Mangetsu and Suigetsu were taking it easy. Haku was barely trying. They were just going along with Zabuza. That meant Zabuza wanted to try out his new skills? I watched as Sasuke cartwheeled backwards to avoid a couple Kunai. He went through rapid hand seals and shot a giant fire ball into the air. Mangetsu countered with a huge wave of water. Steam filled the air and I waved the air in front of me to get rid of the heat.

Things were getting a bit too hot for my liking.

"arg!" Naruto growled. I whipped my head around. I saw Suigetsu use a small water Jutsu to clear a path of clones. He dashed forward towards me. The clones moved to intercept, but Suigetsu easily dispatched them. He was mere meters from me, his arms outstretched. I stared at him quietly.

And suddenly, a blur came out and tackled Suigetsu. Naruto erupted from the tree line and socked Suigetsu in the face. "Get away from him!" Naruto growled.

Suigetsu bounced backwards and rolled to his feet. He spat blood out and chuckled. "that's one hell of a punch. What else you got?"

Naruto laughed back. "I got you." Naruto smirked.

My eyes widened as Naruto revealed he had shadow clones surrounding Suigetsu. All of them had paper seals in their hand. "Lightning Release: Lightning Prison!" Naruto cried as the seals activated and a cone of lightning appeared around Suigetsu. As the cage completed, the clones disappeared and Naruto smirked in victory. "It's over."

Suigetsu growled as he looked around him for an opening. He looked around once and took a long breath. He cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. "Got to admit. You're pretty good." Suigetsu turned to stare at Naruto. "But, I think it's time I got serious." Suigetsu slowly pulled out his sword.

I felt it.

That intent.

I blinked.

There were corpses on the ground. Fire in the air. I could hear screaming, both in pain and rage. I smelt blood. I felt the pounding in my ears. I felt fire in my veins. Time to plan. Time to lead. Time to fight. Time to go to war. I gasped and took a long breath.

I closed my eyes and counted to ten.

No. I wasn't at war.

I looked up and saw Suigetsu started to gather chakra around him. Mangetsu pushed back Sasuke several yards and landed on a nearby tree. "Suigetsu" He called out in warning.

Suigetsu wasn't listening. Sakura panted as the side of her face was now bruised. But, Haku wasn't even looking at her anymore. Haku's focus was on Suigetsu, who was now glowing blue.

I felt a worried pulse in the back of my neck. I know. I know. It was time to put an end to this.

I could still hear Zabuza and Kakashi fighting. I could still hear breathing. I could still hear the wind.

But, I was focused on what was before me.

I stepped forward.

Not as Toki.

Not as the Tabinin.

I donned Boss once again. "Enough." I growled. My shoulders straight. My eyes bored into Suigetsu.

Suigetsu's eyes immediately focused on me. I felt Mangetsu and Haku do the same. They all straightened. They knew what I was saying. They knew exactly who I was right now.

"Put away your weapons. Stand down. Now!" I said again.

Naruto looked at me desperately. "Nii-san. They're going to-"

I ignored him for now. I watched as Suigetsu stand up straight up and sheath his blade. All of his chakra released and relaxed. Haku did the same as Mangetsu dropped down next to her. I nodded and took a long breath. "ZABUZA!" I cried loudly in the air.

There was a pause in the air. Suddenly there was whistling in the wind and Zabuza appeared near Suigetsu. His sword drawn and was slightly bleeding from the arm. Kakashi whisked next to me and he was bleeding as well. "Toki? What's going on?"

I ignored him and looked at Zabuza. "Stand down."

Kakashi stepped forward. "Toki. We-" Kakashi shook his head. "this is a shinobi situation. You can't-"

I took a small side glance at Kakashi. "I'm not talking to you." I turned to Zabuza and stepped forward. "I said." I repeated. "Stand down now."

Zabuza stared at me and I continued to stare right back. "You ordering me?" Zabuza asked.

I chuckled. I let my chakra flow through my seals. The ink started to wrap around my neck visibly as I showed him what I was willing to call. "You know I am."

There was a moment I thought I would have to call my team. My men. I never really had a name for it. We really a mixed lot. We branched between statuses, years and experience. But they were my team. Zabuza was part of my team at one point. He knew when I was serious. Zabuza nodded and sheathed his blade. "Well it was all in good fun then."

I let the chakra go, but the burning pit in my stomach was stocked. I was livid. "What the hell were you thinking!?" I growled. I looked at each of them. Haku had the decency too look sorry. Suigetsu and Mangetsu just looked sheepish. And Zabuza had the audacity to shrug. "It was fun." He explained.

"Fun?!" I palmed my face. "this is fun." I waved my hand behind me towards team 7."

"Hey they were strong. And the kids have been meaning to stretch their limbs" Zabuza held up his hand in placation.

I rubbed my face and let out a long sigh. "Of all the things..."

Haku walked over and bowed deeply. "We're really sorry. Zabuza-sensei, just wanted to have fun. I told Mangetsu and Suigetsu to take it easy on them. We're really sorry." Her face was like a very sorry puppy.

I stared at her and then looked up at the heavens for answers. I found none and cursed. I turned to team 7, who was looking bewildered and confused. I placed my hands on my hips and shook my head. "Team 7." I said. "this is team Zabuza. That is" I pointed to them as I introduced them. " Haku, Suigetsu, and Mangetsu."

I crossed my arms. "they were my associates for a time. Never really thought I would see them again. But if I ever did, I thought we had a good peaceful working relationship to build off of." I glared at Zabuza.

Zabuza waved off my anger and walked towards Kakashi. "I wouldn't say peaceful. More like exciting. Very exciting." He said. He looked at Kakashi. "No harm no foul."

Kakashi looked affronted. "You tried to slice me in two?"

"Tried being the operative word." Zabuza smirked. "wanted to test my skills versus a legend." Zabuza looked over at me. "So?"

I glared at him and shook my head. "You got room and board in Wave?"

Zabuza nodded. "Plenty of rooms. We were expecting your regular crew to be honest."

I shrugged. There was no getting around it now. "well I have one of them with me now." I put my hand and flicked my hand.

In a brush of the wind, Blade was standing next to me, in his gear. I could visibly see Naruto stiffen. Kakashi stared at me if I had grown a second head. I shrugged at him and merely mouthed to him that I would explain later. Blade nodded to Zabuza and turned to face the others.

He was about to greet them when there was a loud cry.

"Blade!" Haku cried. He was suddenly tackled off his feet as Haku barreled into him. I stared at them tangled on the ground and sighed again. "Let's get moving" I cleared my throat. "And clean up any wounds we got." I looked at Zabuza's bleeding arm.

I turned to Suigetsu and Mangetsu, who had walked up next to Zabuza. Suigetsu was laughing at Blade.

"Good to see you two." I said.

They both bowed to me. "Good to see you again." They said in unison.

I nodded and turned back to Zabuza. "You're helping them clean up you know…."

"Right." Zabuza grumbled.

Cleaning up was… awkward.

Oh, Zabuza's team were fine with everything. They were jovial, joked around and moved quickly. Team 7 spent half the time staring at the and the other half being very careful. Blade acted as the middleman, handing back spare weaponry and sorting things quickly. Naruto stared at him a couple times and then at me. I merely winked at him and let the kid draw his own conclusions. I guess the kunai was out of the holster, so I would have to talk to them later.

I shoved my hands in my pockets and started across the bridge. Zabuza walked beside me, with Kakashi closely behind.

Blade was in front walking with Haku. I carefully noticed that their arms were locked. I would have to… talk to Shin about that later. Team 7 were walking somewhat side by side with the rest of Team Zabuza. Mangetsu and Suigetsu threw jokes around. Sakura would awkwardly laugh while Sasuke just stared at them confused. Naruto, however, was in the back. I could feel him staring at me.

"Sorry about messing around." Zabuza finally said, while we reached the halfway point of the bridge.

I shook my head. "When I had called a meeting. I didn't expect you. Nor did I expect the welcome party." I sighed for the umpteenth time.

Zabuza shrugged. "Well, blood got pumping and couldn't really stop it from there. Anyways, do you want them in the meeting?" he thumbed back to Team 7.

I slouched. "No. Business is business. This was supposed to be a drop off, not a full meeting. But, things change and I'll get over it." I rubbed my chin. What would I have team 7 do in the mean time? "I could have Team 7 check on Tazuna and see how things are going."

Zabuza nodded. "Haven't swung by there. We rented out a couple hotels near the docks. Didn't want to cause too much of a ruckus."

I laughed sarcastically at that. "Sometimes I wonder why you ever made it out…" I trailed off and rolled my eyes.

"My charming good looks, excellent skills?" Zabuza grinned like the devil.

"Anyways" I looked up and saw that we were at the end of the bridge. The sign with the words Naruto Bridge greeted us. "Let's go ahead and head to the docks as group. There's some good restaurants there. I heard they were rebuilding with the money that-"

I paused as I heard Haku laugh loudly at something Shin had said. Shin bumped her shoulder with his and tried to shush her. I turned back to Zabuza, who had his eyes trained on Blade.

"We're going to have to deal with that." Zabuza murmured.

"Let them have it." I coughed. I shoved my hands in my pockets. Relationships between villages were fine. Even if Mizu wasn't allied with Konoha properly, I trusted them.

We started to enter the village proper and there were many villagers about. A lot actually were staring at us. They weren't afraid, judging by the children running around us, but rather very curious. Some of them whispered to each other and others just gawked openly. I ignored them and continued my pace towards the docks.

"So," I cleared my throat. I looked around the rebuilt Wave. "This place has really cleaned up."

The houses looked new. The timber looked fresh and solid. The ground had solid concrete on the ground and there were light posts near the sidewalk. It looked immensely better than when I had been here only a couple months ago. I noticed people were a lot fuller. Their eyes were bright and people were walking the streets openly.

"Oh" Zabuza said, suddenly. "I forgot to mention something."

"Hmm?" I asked. I moved to the side as a rush of children ran past. They were messing around with water balloons. I weaved around them and looked ahead. The docks were right in front of us.

"I got a place in mind. Follow me." Zabuza said and started to guide us towards a restaurant on the edge of the docks. The surrounding areas looked quite busy, but this restaurant looked quiet. Which was strange. I saw the someone standing at the door talking to a young couple. The two looked like they wanted to enter but the man shook his head.

"You reserved it?" I asked him.

"Not me." Zabuza said. He nodded to the man at the door.

The man bowed his head. "It is an honor to have you at our restaurant." He opened the door and showed us in.

I walked in and saw the restaurant empty. Zabuza must have pulled out all the stops for this set up, because this restaurant was fancy. The tables and chairs were oak. The material on the sides were high quality and I saw several chefs waiting in the wings. We trudged in, taking off our sandals and replacing them with slippers provided to us. My feet relished the soft fabric against my toes.

I whistled in appreciation. "Thanks Zabuza. Well, we can probably just talk here then." I laughed. I looked behind me and saw Team 7 awkwardly enter in. Team Zabuza easily put in and settled themselves into a couple of chairs. Haku sat down across from Blade. But all of them were waiting expectantly. I looked at Naruto and then at Kakashi. "So, why don't we have lunch here? Then we can have you guys explore the city and meet a couple of my contacts here in the city. After that, we'll see about getting the materials to the right people."

Kakashi stepped forward. "That sounds like a plan." There was an edge in his voice. "Is there any other surprises we should know about?"

I sighed. "Yeah. Sorry again. This never was the plan." I looked at Naruto and rubbed my eyes. I turned back to Kakashi and stared him in the eyes. "I don't think I have anything scheduled."

Kakashi nodded. "ok. Then we'll-"

"Really no plans. Not even tea with an old friend?"

My heart stopped.

Blade rose to his feet.

I turned slowly toward the voice. Auburn hair wrapped in a tight bun. A dark blue dress both elegant and entrancing. Dazzling green eyes that bore into me. And a smile, a genuine smile, that was playful and excited.

My lungs exhaled. "Mei."

The Mizukage flicked her hair behind her with a giggle. "Surprised to see me, Toki?"

I walked forward quickly towards her. I smiled wide with a laugh. "I can't believe you'd actually leave-" I coughed and shook my head. I kept on smiling and just shrugged. I didn't know what to say.

Mei laughed at me. "Well" She winked. "I'm not really here on business. So…" She paused. "Can I at least get a hug?"

I blinked. I got the message. This was not the Mizukage. Just Mei. I opened my arms and reached gently around her. She returned the hug and sighed. "Good to see you Toki."

"I'm happy you're well." I said back. I broke away and straightened my back. Man. To see her here out of Mizu was surprising. I certainly didn't expect this. I would have to ask her some real questions when-

Wait.

I turned around quickly and saw Team 7 staring at me with wide eyes and slack jaws.

Kakashi raised his hand slowly. "Yo? Would you like to explain Toki-kun?"

Oh I wish I could.

I rubbed the back of my head and chuckled nervously. "Well. Team 7 this is Mei. She's a very good friend." I winked at her and then turned to Naruto. "Mei this is Team 7. And this" I waved Naruto forward.

Naruto looked at me quickly and then at Mei. He slowly walked forward. "This is Naruto, Mei."

Mei blinked and leaned forward. "So you're little Naruto." Mei smiled gently. "Toki's told me some about you."

Naruto nodded slowly, blushing slightly. "Um thanks. Toki- um." He blinked rapidly. "You're very pretty. I mean um-"

I laughed in the back of my head. At least I wasn't the one getting embarrassed.

Mei continued. "Toki is a very good man. You're lucky to have him as your older brother."

Naruto straightened. There was a puff to his chest. "I know. He's the best older brother in the world."

There was a small indignant cry for Sasuke. I turned away as my face felt a bit warm. I ruffled Naruto's hair and coughed. "well. Let's go get some food then?"

Mei nodded and looked towards the chefs. "Please fill out their order." She pointed towards Team 7 and the rest. She turned towards me. "Toki, could you follow me upstairs?"

"Of course." I said without fear.

"Toki" Blade stood at attention.

"It's fine." I waved him off. "Just enjoy the day off."

I turned to Kakashi and held out my hand. "Your hand please."

Kakashi held out his hand without hesitation. I placed my hand on his wrist and focused chakra through my seals. Ink splayed over his wrist and formed names and addresses. "Those are the people I need you to deliver the goods to." I reached into my pack and pulled out scrolls with names written on them. "Just unseal and hand it to them. Blade will handle verification."

Blade nodded.

"We'll accompany them." Zabuza said gruffly.

Kakashi stared at him but after a moment shrugged.

I nodded. "Be on your best behavior." I looked at Naruto and winked. Naruto nodded nervously but moved to sit down at one of the tables.

I turned and followed Mei up the stairs.

The upper deck had been cleared. Only a large table with two sets on the table. I moved swiftly over and pulled out the chair for Mei. I gave her a teasing smile as she sat down and I moved to the other side.

Without saying a word, I placed my hand underneath the table and spread my usual privacy seals.

Mei pulled a familiar teapot and gently put in tea leaves. She placed the lid on and poured chakra into the pot. I could hear hot water start to bubble inside.

"So." Mei crossed her arms on the table and leaned forward. "How have you been?"

I leaned back and sighed. "Fine, just fine." I closed my eyes and took a breath. Business or catching up? As Toki or as a Konoha adviser? I opened my eyes and focused. "I'm here to offer a spot in the Chuunin Exams for Mizu. It will be held in Konoha in a month's time. I need a response."

Mei's eyes narrowed. Her hands tightened around her empty cup. Her eyes rolled over me once. "We'll accept."

I nodded. I had expected it, but… not that fast. "Lot of trust."

"If it was anyone else, Toki. Anyone else I would have said no."

"You really think you can trust me?" I asked wearily.

"With my life." She said without hesitation. She leaned back with a coy smile.

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Am I that obvious?"

Mei shook her head. "I've seen how you treat people you care about. And I know you care about-" She brushed a brand of hair back and looked away slightly.

I swallowed. "Yeah, I do care."

She nodded, still looking away. I coughed and moved to pour our tea. A waitress came by with two entries. She set it down and scampered away quickly. I sat there waiting for Mei to turn back.

"Yuudai has taken position as head Jounin." Mei said. "Jiro is rallying the people and has boosted trade with hot springs."

I nodded. "Did my old contacts help?"

Mei turned back finally. "Yes, and the help you sent afterwards too."

I blinked. How had she known? "Did Jiro tell you?"

She shook her head. "I figured it out. Though I think the shipment of tea straight to my doorstep was a bit too obvious."

I laughed. Oh right, I had forgotten about that one. I leaned forward and idly picked up my chopsticks. "You never told me why you came in person."

Mei nodded slowly. "To visit an old friend and to talk about a rumor."

"The rumor?" I looked up.

"A couple of old Mizu Nuke-nin are Akatsuki. And they were spotted in Grass."

I tapped my finger against the table. "Tell me more…"

And that's it. I wanted to throw Mizu back in the mix to add some spice. While we will be going into the Chuunin Exam arc, there will be some changes and there will be some new stuff. I will probably be focusing on the politics of it all, how things are set up, how people play off each other and so on. I have some pretty big plans on how things are going to go down and it'll probably just sprawl out from there.

I also plan on tying a lot of loose ends and bringing back some people. A lot of people hold grudges or promises and I think it's time I address some of them.

I'm also probably going to take a few steps back on the Hyuuga thing. I had a plan for it, but, now that I'm writing the Chuunin exam arc, I feel like it's filler.

On this whole mission, I wanted to put a spin on the very classic wave arc. I always thought the wave arc was a bit boring, as it is used in so many stories. It's not bad; it's just overused. I really wanted to take a different approach where the whole thing was just a political mess. Zabuza needs Toki alone but runs into Team 7. He can't just take off his headband and message Toki. I mean look at Zabuza.

He can't have Haku or the others do it because it's a delicate situation. So Zabuza does the crazy thing and tries to steal Toki away. Silly, but fun for me. Then with Mei. Now it's a huge huge huge plot hole why Mei would go to see Toki personally. I just wanted to use her instead of Yuudai (Who would have been the logical choice). But Yuudai doesn't add enough emotional weight nor 'power' that I wanted to bring to the table. So, if you're going to go big why not go to the top.

I imagined it like a war general meeting with the president but they're both old friends.

Well, I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading!