26. Time To Race

Pokémon Speech

Story Start: Harbor of Degarashi

Smoke based fireworks were shooting off in the rapidly brightening morning sky while a massive crowd cheered near the ceremonial starting doors. Sakura wasn't paying the crowd that much attention though, instead nervously looking around as she whispered to Sasuke "Shouldn't Naruto have been back by now?"

Sasuke hmphed, but despite what he actually wanted to say, instead said "I believe he already is, look at the other runner."

Both Sakura and Idate who had heard him turned to look and both felt their eyes widen a little as they saw the other runner walking over scratching at himself like he was a dog who had a whole swarm of fleas in his fur.

"Yo." Naruto said from right beside Sakura, a spot that had been empty mere moments before.

Said pinkette jumped and said "Naruto, don't DO that!" Naruto gave a chuckle and grin while she calmed her racing heart and said "What exactly did you do to him?"

Naruto leaned in to whisper in her ear "Five packs of water proof itching powder, I don't think he's going to be able to run as fast as he usually can. That and I put a bit of slow acting laxative in his morning tea."

Sakura shuddered a little before she giggled and said "Oh, that's evil."

"Ain't it just?" Naruto said with a grin before he looked to Idate and his grin turned to a slight frown as he said "Look, Idate, you don't like us and I sure as hell don't like you. But we have been hired to protect you during this race so if nothing else, trust us to at least complete this mission to the best of our abilities alright?"

Idate frowned as well before he nodded and said "Just don't get in my way."

As Idate turned back towards the doors, Naruto kept in the urge to sigh before he turned to his two teammates and said "I've scouted the entire island, if for some reason the guy can still run too fast for Idate to keep up with we have the option of teleporting to a spot ahead of him."

"Good, but let's keep that for a last resort, I can't imagine the people here would appreciate us doing something that could be seen as making light of this tradition." Sakura said while Sasuke scoffed not really caring about if they'd be 'disrespecting' tradition or not.

The speakers suddenly sounding had the crowd falling silent as it said "Attention: the great Todoroki Shrine Race is about to begin! Running for the Wasaabi Family: Idate Morino!"

"Wait, did he just say Morino?" Naruto asked. He traded a wide eyed look with Sakura as she said "You don't think?" Even Sasuke was giving Idate an evaluating look now.

Uncaring of the now confused shinobi, the announcer continued "Running for the Wagarashi Family: Fukusuke Hikyakuya!"

Fukusuke somehow managed to stop itching long enough to raise a fist with a triumphant yell. The doors in front of them opened up as the announcer said "Runners, take your mark!"

Naruto had just a few seconds to see a solid grey line on the far horizon before the announcer shouted "GOO!" and the two runners took off towards the boats. But to everyone's confusion, Idate suddenly took a left and began running away from the two docked boats. Face palming, Naruto said "He's going for a northern launch point, come on!"

Naruto was off like a shot after Idate and Sakura and Sasuke scrambled to keep up. For all that Naruto would transform when he absolutely needed speed, even in his natural form he was fast when he wanted to be. (Thank you running from angry shinobi after he had pranked them!) Pushing chakra through their limbs in an effort to keep up with the two, Sakura shouted "How do you know where he's going?!"

Naruto jerked his head to the horizon and said "There's a storm coming in, if we go straight to the north tip of the island from here then we'd have to deal with the winds constantly pushing us back, but if we go up North they shouldn't be so bad!"

As they passed the last building of the town's harbor Sakura and Sasuke glanced to the side and saw the line of grey on the horizon and Sauske scoffed as he said "When did you become such a weather expert?"

"You pick up a few things when you're learning how to fly." Naruto answered before he suddenly made two shadow clones who suddenly dropped back to directly beside Sakura and Sasuke. Before the two could ask what he was doing, the three blondes erupted in smoke before they came running out on all fours as Rapidashes. "Get on!" The clone by Sakura said and she winced at the mane of fire but quickly hopped on, instinctively wrapping her arms around its neck and blinking in surprise when she only felt warmth instead of the expected burning sensation. Sasuke tsked but also leapt onto his clone and the two sped up to catch up with the original who was now right on Idate's trail.

Idate meanwhile was giving Naruto a wide eyed look as he ran and said "What the hell did you just turn into?!"

"A Rapidash, now keep your eyes on the road." Naruto said curtly.

Idate tsked but did as told and said "Hope you can keep up little pony!" and suddenly double his speed.

Snorting, Naruto said to himself "Please, I can go a lot faster than that in this form!" The three horses easily sped up and kept pace with Idate. Incidentally, this burst of speed left the three tailing Rain ninja in their dust, leaving them struggling to not lose too much ground and preventing them from making any moves. They'd have to strike out in the water. Which was fine by them when they actually thought about it.

Within ten minutes of hard running they came within sight of the north launching point and as they came within a hundred feet of the stone steps leading to the beach Idate dropped from a sprint down to a walk. Naruto dispelled his transformation and as soon as Sakura and Sasuke dismounted his clones dispelled. As they walked down the stairs, Sakura asked "So what now, do we just borrow a boat?"

"That won't be necessary." Naruto said, grabbing Idate's shirt as the runner turned to go towards the house. Walking down to the beach, he ignored the sound of the house's door opening and said "I've got a couple of forms we can use. Since we've probably gotten ourselves a bit of a lead I think I'll go with a form that will keep us dry."

"What are you talking about youngster? Don't you need a boat to get across?" An old man asked as he quickly jogged over to them.

Naruto gave the old man a grin and said "Why would I use a boat when I can do this?" Another clone formed, this one freshly topped off in chakra and it took a massive charka leap out over the water before transforming just before it hit it. There was a massive smoke cloud before it cleared revealing a massive wailord that threw up a large plume of water as it settled. As everyone but Naruto lowered their arms from where they had instinctively thrown them up from the spray of water, jaws proceeded to drop and Naruto grinned as he said "Ladies and gents, may I introduce to you the tallest Pokémon out there at a whopping forty seven feet and seven inches, Wailord!"

"That is one big fish." The old man said in awe before he shook his head and grinned as he said "Well, I guess you guys really don't need a boat after all. You ninja types certainly never fail to impress. Good luck Idate, and make sure you win, I'm tired of how the Wagarashi family has been running things around here!"

Idate nodded with a grin and said "Yeah, you can count on me."

Naruto gave a noncommittal hum at that before he walked before the group and formed a cup in his hands as he said "Sakura, need a boost?"

Sakura gave the massive whale that was easily thirty feet out a considering look before she nodded and said "Probably wouldn't hurt if we want to be fast." She took three steps back then took a running leap onto Naruto's hands and he flung her up into the air. Sakura did a flip three quarters of the way through the air in order to not overshoot and landed in a crouch.

Giving Idate a raised eyebrow, Naruto said "What about you?" Idate tsked to himself before he sighed and said "Fine." He was quickly thrown over as well and Naruto turned towards Sasuke only to see the that the Avenger was already running across the water towards his clone. Shrugging, Naruto gave the old man a two fingered salute before he took two chakra leaps, one across the water and one up twenty three feet up to the top of the submerged whale. Once Sasuke was up as well, the Wailord clone turned out to sea and began rapidly swimming, quickly joining the northward current to go even faster.

"We'll probably get there in just under an hour." The clone rumbled beneath them as it swam and Sakura nodded as she said "Right, thanks for this by the way." The clone merely expelled some water from its water spout further down its body in response and everyone sat down to wait out the trip.

A few minutes of slightly tense silence later, Naruto gave Idate a sidelong look and said "So, Idate Morino, any relation to a guy named Ibiki?"

Idate's eyes widened and he said "My brother's alive?!"

"Brother? Wow, he really didn't age well." Naruto said in amusement, Sakura nodding in agreement since Ibiki had looked like he was easily in his late twenties, early thirties, while Idate could only be a few years older than them.

"I was kind of a late surprise for my parents." Idate said in embarrassment before he shook his head and said "Why am I telling you that?! Never mind, Ibiki, when did you see him, how is he?"

"To answer your second question, scary as hell, and for the first, he was our proctor in the first part of the Chunnin Exams." Naruto said ignoring the first part of what Idate said.

"The first part huh, so I'm guessing he gave you a question that no one could get right at the end." Idate said, a little bit of resentment appearing in his eyes.

"Why don't you see for yourself." Naruto said deciding to be nice given that Idate had apparently thought Ibiki was dead. He transformed into an Alakazam and projected the memory of the first exam to the runner.

When the memory ended, there was silence for a full minute, during which Naruto dropped his transformation but then: "H-he's alright." Idate said to himself in obvious relief, a single tear falling from his eyes. He closed them for another moment before he shook his head and visibly switched tracks as he looked at Naruto and said "How many of those strange forms can you turn into anyway?"

"Four hundred and ninety-four." Naruto said without hesitation before he blinked and looked down at his Pokeballs and said "Speaking of forms I can take, I should probably let my partners out for a bit."

"Partners?" Idate asked only for his eyes to widen as Naruto released Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise. The three Pokémon all let out stretches like they had just woken up from a nap before Blastoise said "So Naruto, we going to get a shot at whoever comes after us or are you going to hog all of the fun?"

"Ewuh?" was Idate's rather intelligent contribution to the conversation even as Naruto chuckled and said "I'll let you guys have a go. I seriously doubt the Wagarashi family paid for any really strong shinobi, even if it was for control of a port town, it'd be too expensive."

"I don't know, Lady Tsunade did send you on this mission after all." Sakura said and Sasuke hmphed at the implication that Naruto could be considered so strong while he wasn't. (Oh Sasuke, you poor, poor, ignoramus emo.)

Naruto let out a pleased chuckle and rubbed the back of his head as he said "True, but I'm a bit of a special case. I'm only a fresh Chunnin still after all."

Getting his composure back, Idate gave Naruto a confused look and said "Um, what do you mean? I mean your transformation and these partners of yours seem unusual to be sure, but if you only became a Chunnin at the most recent exam then why would you be considered so strong?"

"Well-" Naruto started only to twitch as the Wailord clone did sending the natural Pokémon stumbling a little as it said "I feel like a mosquito just took a shot at me."

Naruto traded looks with his teammates before as one they stood up and walked down the Wailord clone's back, Idate and his partners following behind them. Thirty feet from the clone's head, there was an arrow sticking out, and when they looked past the tail they saw a boat trailing them with three Rain shinobi on board. Seeing them, Blastoise said "Hey Naruto, isn't that guy in the middle the one who tried to sneak up on you while you were taking a whizz in the Forbidden Forest?"

"Yep, which one of you guys want 'em?" Naruto asked with one of his hands in the pockets of his shinobi pants while the other deflected another arrow with a quick drawn kunai. *

"I'm good for now. I'd rather wait until I'm on solid ground before my fight." Venusaur said with a shrug of his front legs before he deflected four more bolts with Razor Leaf.

Blastoise turned towards Charizard and said "Rock, Paper, Scissors?" Charizard nodded and the two bounced their right hands up and down three times before Blastoise made a fist and Charizard held out two fingers. Blastoise pumped his winning fist while Charizard gave a brief pout before he watched with everyone else as Blastoise went as far back as he could along the clone's back without getting to the constantly moving tail part.

Naruto didn't need to see Blatoise's face to know there was a grin on it as he said "You guys need to take a chill pill, Ice Beam!" The bolt of blue lightning caught the crossbow toting Rain ninjas by surprise and since they were standing together they were all caught in it forming one big ice cube. Not finished yet, Blastoise's cannons cocked and he gleefully called out "Say hello to my little friends, Hydro Cannon!" His water canons fired at full power actually pushing the turtle back a few inches across the clone's rubbery skin. Said jets of water shredded the boat leaving two big pieces and a whole lot of smaller debris and sending the frozen ninja into the water below. Clapping his hands together, Blastoise turned around and walked back towards the others as he said "And that's, that."

Sakura blinked as he came over and looked at the water worriedly as she asked "Do you think those guys will be able to get out of the ice before they suffocate or drown?"

"So long as they don't try to attack us again, it's not our problem." Sasuke said coldly, pun intended, and walked back towards the front of the clone.

Sakura winced before giving Naruto a beseeching look and after a moment he sighed and said "Fine, I'll send a clone to teleport them to somewhere they can thaw out."

"Thanks Naruto." Sakura said with a smile before she too went to the front.

Naruto gave the water a considering look and said "I think I'll send them to the Land of Wind, that'll thaw them out rather quick."

"You can do that?" Idate asked even as a clone was made and turned into a Buizel before hopping into the water, twin tails rapidly spinning as it dove beneath its depths.

"Since I've been there before, yes." Naruto said before he also began heading to the clone's front, his partners following, and Idate followed with even more questions about the blonde than before.

END

Author's Notes: Update Schedule and poll on profile. Also, for the NEW schedule that I'll be starting at the end of THIS cycle, because Series won with number of Follows and Favorites a second, I'm going to be adding all of the Follows and Favorites for the stories of the same series together and ordering them by the Series with the most while further ordering the stories by publishing date. (Very few wanted me to keep it alphabetically ordered apparently.)

By the way, does anyone know how to put that tick mark over the e in Pokémon without having to rely on spell check doing it?

*Show of hands, how many of you guys forgot that Naruto wears the 'standard' shinobi outfit rather than a jumpsuit in this story?