Chapter 29: Of Goodwill
Well, this took a little longer than I expected it to. I decided that this mission would need to be broken into two chapter, just so I wouldn't put you guys through another 10k chapter (I apologize for Virga being as long as it was). If everything goes as planned, I should have the last part of this mission completed and posted this upcoming weekend. Shew. I apologize if this feels rushed or if it feels like filler. D: Also, look over any typos that might have managed to sneak in. haha
Nameless: Thank you for your reviews. Let me answer one of them with this:
Kakashi's dark eye narrowed and he shifted his weight from the tip of his fingers, to the balls of his feet as he straightened his crouched form. The ANBU mask he wore over his face trapped his breath against his skin and helped fend off the chill that was in the air that night. For the past several days, he had been tracking one target - through rainy nights and hot days, relentlessly - and she had proven to be an elusive target.
He shifted his weight once more, his senses alert and his body prepared to leap into action.
His quarry was cornered.
As if his intent was a tangible substance, the girl paused and looked around. His fingers slipped into the pouch on his leg and gathered shuriken.
The girl frowned, "I know you're there."
Kakashi froze - how did she know?
She bolted.
Despite the chase she had given him, her luck had run out. In seconds, he had her pinned to the ground.
"Dammit, Kakashi," she groaned into the dirt.
"You shouldn't be here," he whispered by her ear.
"Shouldn't you be doing ANBU stuff, instead of chasing me around? You know, that whole self imposed isolation because of PTSD and depression thing that you're not handling well?"
He pushed her face harder into the ground, "If you'd stop stalking other authors and work on your own project, maybe you'd be done with Part 2 by now."
"But.. but... Windschatten and The Tale of Two Leaves..."
Kakashi rolled his eyes.
"I'll fight you."
"Of course you will," he replied, sweetly. "Fanfiction authors are deadly opponents, after all."
"I'll make you gay with Gai."
He knocked her unconscious with a well placed blow to the back of her head and threw her over his shoulder like a large, lazy sack of potatoes.
But, seriously people. Fangirl with me over Windschatten's fanfiction, The Tale of Two Leaves.
Chapter Song: Modest Mouse - Dashboard
Chapter Summary: Arashi meets Konoha's Sublime Green Beast of Prey and begins her first B Ranked mission, but will tension in the team cause issues along the way?
Chapter 29
Arashi stood in an alley, dabbing at her eyes, furiously. She knew deep down that she would face rejection – they were fourteen and thirteen, respectively, they were both busy with careers, and his family probably expected him to marry in their clan. Things were easier for them as friends and nothing more. She knew all of those were obstacles, even without the question of whether he cared for her in the same way or not. Even with all of this knowledge and the expectation of being turned down, she did not expect it to hurt like this.
Her chest was burning, but the rest of her body was numb. The scene played again and again in her head, leaving her senses reeling. She felt stupid. She questioned her position as his friend, questioned every choice of word, and questioned all of his hard to read reactions.
All she knew was that she loved him and that he made her feel special. Every time he looked at her – every rare smile he pointed in her direction – made her feel unique as a person. He managed to make her feel worthwhile without trying, and when she saw his efforts in her life – the vote of faith he passed on to the Third and the watchful eye he kept on Satoshi – it left her speechless. While she was coming to accept that people were viewed by little more than their usefulness, it was never that way with their friendship. She never worried that her particular set of skills as a kunoichi played a role in his treatment of her.
Now she was terrified she had messed it all up.
"I serve the Land of Fire and uphold its Will not only for the Uchiha."
Rejected or not, she wanted to believe that he did care for her. Actions spoke louder than any words. Even if it was not romantically like she wanted, he had shown her that he cared, had he not?
"For those that motivate me, there is nothing I would not do."
Why did those words feel like a good-bye?
Arashi sniffled.
She felt so very stupid for throwing her feelings out like that. She had tied her happiness into someone else – someone she could not have – just like the main character of a cheap romance novel. The difference between those characters and her was that there was no happy ending waiting for her. Now she had to go on her first B Ranked mission and then come back to see if she could pick up the pieces.
Arashi dabbed her eyes once more, took a breath, and stepped out of the alley.
First and foremost, she was a kunoichi of Konohagakure, and there was work to be done.
The first thing Arashi decided about her mission was that she was confused.
This was her first time working with a Jounin she did not know and they had four captives with names she had to memorize. That would have been far from overwhelming, but she was still in a haze from sobbing violently before she arrived. Her makeup was in need of being touched up – she was grateful no one pointed out the eyeliner and mascara running from her eyes – and the numb sensation radiating through her body was a distraction she needed to deal with better, but that was not what threw her.
What made her pause and stare with her mouth hanging open like an idiot was what this Jounin was wearing and what he was saying.
Oh kami, he's in a spandex suit.
"Ahh, yes!" The Jounin, Gai, barked out in a baritone voice. "The last of our youthful group has arrived!"
Oh no, oh no, oh no – I can see everything!
The man grabbed her by the shoulders and smiled, brightly, "You are Arashi, right?"
She stiffened, "Yes, taichou."
"Good!" He released her and straightened to his full height. "I've already been over our plan with Akio and Daisuke, but don't worry." He shot a thumbs up and a wink in her direction. "It won't take long to get you on the same page as us – ahh, sleeping in – the freedoms of youth!"
She was not late, nor did she sleep in. In fact, she was five minutes early.
You green bastard. She wanted to hiss at him, but she chose to apologize, instead, "I'm sorry I wasn't earlier."
He laughed, deep in his chest. His muscles rippled with each movement and she tried to avert her eyes. By doing so, she caught sight of the horrified expression on Daisuke's face and the grimace that contorted Akio's mouth.
"As we discussed, and I – as your taichou – decided, we have many options, but we will not take the most obvious route. No, going South in a direct line toward the rendezvous point would be too predictable."
"Yeah, it is predictable." Arashi's lips thinned into a line, "By taking other routes and going a roundabout way, we can put Konoha between us and the land of Wind for a while, stay deeper in our most traveled routes, and discourage an attack from Suna shinobi."
Gai listened to her and nodded at her reasoning, "Yes, those are the points we discussed, but we're dealing with Jounin and as Elite ninja, they won't be as easily deterred by the proximity of our village or other towns, so we'll have to stay on our toes. It is the better decision to take a route that may take us a little longer, but will prove to be the safer option."
"I definitely see your point." She mentally tacked another day's worth of travel onto the travel time.
"If I was the only one on this mission, I would race headlong toward the rendezvous and face the Suna agents with all the ferocity of youth!" Gai's chest swelled as he imagined the scene. "But, your Sensei advised me to be cautious, because your squad's set of skills are geared not toward open combat, but to other things – which wouldn't be my first choice of training when preparing our next generation for the hardships of battle and life as a ninja – but what is done is done. What matters is that you never give up and you persevere!"
Arashi had to remind herself to close her mouth, because gaping at someone as much as she was gaping at him was rude. At the same time, a rush of gratitude for her Sensei's continued supervision washed through her.
It was easy to make the assumption that Gai was a taijutsu specialist. His clothing allowed mobility and it showed off how much work he put into training and maintaining his physique. Logically, if he were to take on students, they would follow in his footsteps and have a heavy focus on taijutsu and direct combat.
Ibiki was not a taijutsu specialist. He was of more use in his current position than he would be on a battlefield. It was of no surprise that his students were geared more toward specializing in more subtle or prestigious fields than being generalized to everything – Akio being the only one from their Genin squad that would excel in such a way, because Arashi and Daisuke were not suited for much beyond their predisposed aptitudes.
"Don't pout, Arashi!" He slapped her back, playfully – which knocked her forward several steps. "We'll think of this as a learning experience. Our goal is to get them to the rendezvous point at all costs, preferably without being caught." He pointed into the distance, his eyes bright with anticipation. "And if we fail, then we run the entire distance back!"
"Right."
He smiled, eagerly, "Louder!"
Oh, kami. There's no way in hell I'm running all the way back. She took a shallow breath, "Right!"
"That was a little better. We need to get pumped up for this and do our best!"
He's like a motivational speaker or something.
"Here!" The Jounin shoved a scroll in her face. "This is the report issued to us from the Intelligence Division. Scan through it, if you want."
This man was the opposite of their sensei.
Ibiki was quiet, unless he was giving orders, but even then his voice was more like a bear's with the way it rumbled. So far, Gai appeared to nearly shout most of what he said with a vivacious energy that spoke of his love for life. It made Arashi tired to listen to him. While Ibiki would never receive compliments for his sense of style, she had no problems looking at him. With Gai, she continuously averted her eyes or tried to keep them pinned to the center of his face.
Oh, geez, his eyebrows, though! And that bowl cut! She forced a good-natured smile. Still, it's better than looking down. This guy has no issues with confidence. I mean, he's just baring himself to the world without any second thoughts.
Akio walked past the Jounin, "Let's get these people and start transporting them. It's going to take us close to a week to get them down there, and that's if we march them as hard as they can handle."
Yeah, traveling with non-shinobi takes forever. Break after break and the pace is so slow…
"You are as eager as I am to start our mission." Gai threw an arm around the Aburame. "Good!"
Even though Akio's eyes were concealed, Arashi and Daisuke could feel the glare that he shot at the Jounin. Despite the tenacity behind the glower, the man was oblivious and unaffected.
I'm afraid this mission is going to be a very long one.
Akio untangled himself from Gai and walked away with a shudder.
At least I'm not the only one disconcerted.
Arashi sighed.
Seriously, though? Why did fate decree that we would be transporting four people? I mean, if there was only one of two, then they could have assigned me and just one other person to this mission. Sukai could've carried all of us down there and it would have cut down in man power and time. She whined, internally. Oh, well. Getting out of Konoha's probably good for me right now.
Rento was the leader of their group. He gathered the servants that were involved in the scandal and ran with them. He was in his thirties, had short, brown hair, and tanned skin. There was a coldness to his eyes that Arash did not care for – he had seen and done things she did not want to know about.
Haruma was an old man with a reserved disposition and a chronic cough. The first thing she noticed about him was that he refused to meet anyone's eyes. He shied away from it as if he was moving away from physical pain. He had weathered skin and a scar across his face. In the report, it stated that he offered no resistance.
She frowned, Someone broke his spirit years ago.
Toma was young. According to the report, he was eleven. He spoke only when spoken to, revealing a stutter. The kid was scared and his eyes darted, constantly, as he looked for a way to escape. He had a plain appearance. His plump cheeks were his most defining characteristic.
Poor kid. How did he even get pulled into this? A civilian at his age has no business in a scandal. Their master must have been a real piece of work.
Taiga was a brute of a man. He was at least three times her size. The report stated he was the one to put up the most resistance, with his sheer size proving to be an issue. Beyond that, he was of average intelligence and well aware of the situation he was in.
He's like a muscle bound giant. We should tie him to a wagon and have him pull us to the border. He looks stronger than any ox I've seen.
Arashi familiarized herself with their signatures, although they were faint. Without a doubt, they were not shinobi. The chakra their bodies contained was of a low quantity and unrefined. She doubted any of them would be able to break away, but if they managed to get out of their sight, she wanted to be well aware of what they felt like so that she could find them if the need arose.
Beyond patching up injuries, her other primary function in a group was as a sensor. Since Akio and Daisuke were carrying the Fuin Shugotenshi, she was left with little else to do than keep a watchful eye on their captives and to be aware of anyone tracking their group.
Despite his boastful and open manner, Gai was serious as he eyed their four captives. She refused to think of him as an idiot – he would not have made it to Jounin if he was not capable. Judging by appearance would be foolish.
And painful. I can't look at him. It's like he's naked, but he's not.
The amber eyed, genjutsu specialist went from captive to captive, marking their faces and clothing with paint – preparing them, in case they needed to use the Kamofuraaji no jutsu in order to disappear. Since the Chuunin Exams, she noted that he had taken to wearing facial paint so that he could more quickly activate genjutsu in combat. There were disadvantages to using paint as a medium for his illusions, but he was able to bypass some of those by wearing it.
The four refugees offered no complaint or resistance as he went about his task, but Arashi noticed a difference in the way her teammate treated them. He was gentle with the boy, brisk with the giant, indifferent with the old man, and impatient with the last one.
Out of all of them, Rento was the one that Daisuke sneered at and refused to stand near any longer than he needed to.
What did that guy do that made him the one Daisuke hates? Do I even want to know? She chewed on her lips. Yeah, I'll ask Akio later.
The rest of the report went on to state that there was Kiri hunter ninjas after them, as well as at least one Suna Jounin. Arashi clicked her tongue. If the scandal they were part of was serious enough for the Mizukage to send some of his men after them, then she knew the pardon was a lie. The Third had to know it, too. They were taking these people to their deaths – in the name of goodwill between two Lands.
She swallowed, thickly, Well, I don't know how I feel about this, but if they were involved in shady stuff, got caught, ran, and sold out their country? Yeah, whatever is waiting for them is what they get.
They chained each of their captives together by the ankles and then bound their hands. It was going to be a long journey for them, walking in single file.
I get why they wanted this squad composition. With Daisuke's camouflage, Akio's bugs, and my sensor abilities, we can stay hidden, ambush, and be aware of our opponent's position through the entire mission. Throw in the Jounin for combat experience and we're set.
Daisuke nudged her side, "Put some sort of seal on their legs or something. If they try to run, then you can set it off and immobilize them."
"You want me to blow their legs off?" She asked, flatly.
Daisuke sniffed, "Not that strong of an explosion – not that I care if they lose a leg."
"I guess that makes sense." She conceded. "Shouldn't take me long to set them."
Rento glared at her, "And if they go off and injure us, how would that help your mission? We can't walk if we're crippled and I'm sure you don't want to carry us."
Arashi met his glare, "Good thing I'm a medic. I can mutilate your legs and then have you walking in no time, so I suggest you don't try anything."
They held each other's stare until Daisuke interrupted them.
"I think we should gag each of these guys." He suggested. "Or we'll hear them whine the entire time."
Rento stiffened at the sound of Daisuke's voice and averted his eyes.
Oh yeah. Something happened between those two.
Without a word, Akio pulled bandaging out of one of his pouches and began to gag each of their captives.
Gai looked over the group, "Is everyone almost ready?"
"A couple more minutes." Arashi pulled out a few supplies. "I think Daisuke's suggestion is a good one."
What she was sealing into their legs was a simple explosive jutsu, from the same classification as paper bombs. The main difference was that the force of the explosion was tuned down enough that it would not destroy their legs or break the bone. By placing them away from major arteries and designing the seal to direct the explosion outward and away from the body, it would keep their captives from bleeding to death. If she had to set them off, they would be immobilized but not dead.
She had used this technique several times, just in different ways. The first time was when she blew up Daisuke's paint. The most recent was when she sealed several of them into trees as a trap and blew bits and pieces of leaves and tree trunk everywhere. It was a basic jutsu that could be useful, depending on the situation.
"I remember when I was your age – rushing toward my goals, taking in as much advice as I could. Embrace the springtime of your life, uphold each other!" Gai clenched his fists.
"Yeah. Youth and stuff. We get it." Daisuke sniffed, "Hold still, Arashi."
A shiver ran up her spine as he applied paint to her skin and clothing. She remembered when that would have caused a fight between the two of them, but now practicality meant more to her than the pristine state of her clothing.
Gai leaned toward them, "What are you doing, by the way?"
"It's a camouflage jutsu." Daisuke replied.
"Oh, I see!"
"Looks like you already got Akio, so I guess the last person that needs it now is our taichou," she commented, suppressing the smirk that tugged at her lips.
His amber eyes narrowed to slits. The entire time that she had been present, Daisuke kept a measured distance away from the Jounin. Just as Arashi was uncomfortable in the Jounin's presence and Akio was annoyed by the man, Daisuke found him unpleasant. Irritation bloomed across his face when he realized that she noticed and then ruined his ploy.
The Aburame chuckled at the exchange.
Daisuke looked at her like he was ready to shove her down an open manhole and into a sewer, "I guess you're right, Shi-Shi-chan."
She smiled, innocently, "Well, y'know, it wouldn't be a sound failsafe if the rest of us could hide, but our taichou was left out."
"What would I ever do without you?" Daisuke asked in an overly sweet tone.
Her voice shook with a barely held in check laugh, "You'd be lost without me."
Akio snorted.
"Come on, Daisuke! I'm ready," he struck a pose and pointed at his abs. "A little bit of paint won't hurt this material - if you can wash blood out of it, you can wash out anything!"
Arashi might have felt terrible - rejected, friendzoned, heartbroken, confused, and exhausted from a lack of sleep - but the nasty look and loud sniff from Daisuke was enough to lift her spirits, even if it was just by a little.
Just as Arashi expected, the travel was slow and tedious. Every bump in the road, every hill they had to climb, and every bridge they had to cross seemed to usher in a new issue from their captives. Their feet hurt, their ankles were sore, they had difficulties breathing through the cloth that acted as a gag, and they possessed the most nervous bladders she had ever seen anyone suffer with.
She was just glad that none of the guys expected her to take a turn escorting their captives behind a tree or bush to relieve themselves.
Those silver linings, I guess.
She had yet to pick up a foreign signature and they were still deep enough in the safe routes that bandits were no issue – not that they would present themselves to a group of shinobi without some sort of profit to entice them out of their hiding.
The lack of activity left her too much time to think, which meant she dwelled on thoughts of whether or not she had ruined her dearest friendship.
She frowned.
There was nothing she could do about it while she was on a mission. She tried to comfort herself with the idea that it would be better to give it time before she approached her friend to talk to him about what was said, but it only left her more impatient to get back.
That impatience translated into tension. She was never a fan of sleeping on the ground, relieving herself behind a bush, and going without a decent shower or bath, but her patience was already shortened by other thoughts that were unpleasant.
Daisuke - who was vocal about all of his complaints - was even more agitated than usual. When he was not standing at a distance, trying to distract himself by sketching or drawing the scenery, he was busy bristling at every inconvenience.
Two days of traveling together led to more than a few nasty remarks between the kunoichi and her teammate.
Akio watched them with varying degrees of both amusement and annoyance.
Ugh.
Since her violent experience in the Forest of Death, they had all made a point to treat each other better. They never spoke of what happened. Without even addressing it, it was unanimously decided that it was a taboo topic. It made them all realize how real the danger was in their lives and how finite their time together was. In retrospect, a few nasty remarks and nothing more was a huge improvement between Arashi and Daisuke, but with the way tension was rising between the two, a full blown argument was not far off.
She took a deep breath. She was not sure what had Daisuke on edge and she had not gotten a chance to ask Akio. It was difficult to talk in secret when the group was together and there was little to no privacy.
In an attempt to avoid that fight, she tried to focus her thoughts on something else.
As she tried to distract herself from her worries involving the Uchiha clan, she kept herself busy by reading different things. Arashi's early studies were focused around becoming a shinobi and the Land of Fire's history, but upon accepting this mission, she decided to look into what sort of people she was dealing with. Everything she read indicated a fierce and brutal stock. Kirigakure was not a pleasant place, especially during the Bloody Mist Era.
The history that they had available about that Land was riddled with war and hard times. Although their population was not the most sizable, their military was not something to be trifled with. There were generations of cold blooded competition between them during their formative years. There was also an emphasis on rewards for putting a mission before themselves and their companions – which was a trend that was common in every shinobi country, but Kirigakure took it to another level. If a student wished to graduate, they first had to slaughter their classmates.
Yeah, if it was a brawl in my class, then me and Daisuke would've went down fast. She eyed Akio. And I think I know who would've dominated everyone. I mean, the sheer gross out factor of the kikaichu is enough to knock me out of the running. I don't even want to think about having to fight him for my life.
Their current Mizukage, Yagura, seemed to go to drastic extents to sever diplomatic connections with other Lands. In comparison to the Land of Fire, it was almost like the Land of Water was in a perpetual battle with itself, but not in such a severity that it weakened it.
The only reason they haven't been invaded during their rougher periods of infighting is probably because of how difficult it would be to actually invade. All of that water and all of those islands don't make for an appealing battlefield. It would be a disaster. I guess I can see the point in just leaving those people out there to fight each other.
Each Land had their own underhanded trends. The Mizukage, Yagura, might have made a name for himself as being bloodthirsty, but each kage had their own share of bad reputations. The Tsuchikage was a backstabber that cared little for peace - which included the Third Shinobi war. The current Raikage was known for having a temper and being rash. With Arashi's research into the Hyuuga's seal in order to form a good failsafe for her projects, she had discovered as she was digging around that at some point Kumogakure attempted to steal the Hyuuga's heir and then demanded reparations for the loss of their Head Shinobi - the one responsible for the attempted abduction. The Head Shinobi was supposed to be in Konoha to sign a peace treaty. Instead of everything going off without a hitch, war threats ensued. She could not remember anything specifically negative about the Kazekage, but there was gossip of the issues Sunagakure had keeping pace with Iwa and Konoha. It was possibly because of those difficulties that they were so interested in the refugees from Kirigakure.
Arashi frowned.
While the Sandaime Hokage was appreciated for his desire for peace, it was that same peace seeking that the Tsuchikage saw as weakness.
Thinking of politics makes me tired. Ugh.
If she was to be honest, though, she would have to admit that she found the inner workings between each Land to be fascinating.
Daisuke snapped his fingers in front of her face.
She blinked, "Huh?"
"Finally," he sneered. "I was just wanting to know if you could sense any shinobi in the area."
"Um, nope."
"You sure?" He huffed. "I don't know how much you even pay attention when you're lost in your thoughts like that."
She rolled her eyes, "I wish you'd stop being pissy."
"Pissy?" He hissed. "Coming from you, that's pretty funny, Shi-Shi-chan."
"Excuse me? I was just minding my own business. I think it's pretty sad that you don't have anything better to do other than trying to fight with me."
"Watching paint dry is better than talking to you."
"That sounds like a mental deficiency on your part."
The four chained foreigners watched the exchange in a muted silence. Akio's eyebrows rose above his sunglasses and he frowned in disapproval - it was not appropriate to quibble on missions.
"You know what?" Arashi spat the words. "I can't wait until the next time you need the Fuin Shugotenshi refreshed. You won't have that attitude when you're rolling around on the ground like a pus-"
She was interrupted by Konoha's Green Beast.
"Teenage angst - I experienced my own fair share of it when I was your age - but it is no time for fighting between ourselves! We have a mission to focus on," he pushed Arashi toward Daisuke. "Make up and get your mind on our objectives and focus the overwhelming energy of your youth on your bright futures!"
Arashi and Daisuke grimaced.
This is insane. I am in hell.
The Jounin turned and began herding their captives, "Knees to chest, people! March, march, march! March into the distance!"
The three Chuunin watched him heckle the refugees into motion.
That is its own form of torture - Ibiki would be impressed, I think.
By the time they made camp that night, the captives fell asleep as soon as their heads touched the ground, and each of the Chuunin were tired.
Gai is a slave driver.
"Alright, everyone, gather around the fire and let's share some youthful stories!" The Jounin motioned for everyone to take a seat.
By this point, none of them had the energy to object or come up with an excuse as to why they could not join into his story time. He waited until the three young shinobi were seated together, leaning against each other to stay upright.
"In this life, I have faced many hardships and many defeats, but those defeats only made the victories that much sweeter! As a shinobi, I was not born with natural talent. I have to work three times as hard as the elite to achieve the same results, but with the unrelenting force of youth, I have overcome every obstacle!" He struck a pose - the fire throwing his shadow behind him, wildly, "The best thing I can recommend for anyone is to find a rival to challenge you." He clenched his fist and closed his eyes in concentration. "My rival, the elite shinobi, Kakashi, has proven himself to be worthy of our many challenges over the years."
Arashi blinked, "Kakashi? Hatake Kakashi? He's your rival?"
"My eternal rival!"
Arashi had a hard time imagining the boy she used to pester dealing with Gai. Back then, he was serious, egotistical, difficult, and sometimes he was outright mean. The difference between happy-go-lucky Gai and the man that stepped between her and the Iwa ninjas intent on attacking her at the Chuunin Exams Finals was drastic. They were like night and day. Not that she could claim to know Kakashi. She had not spoken to him since she was six and from what she could tell, he stayed busy with missions. Still, judging by the impression she got from him the only time she had seen him in years, he was still a cold and lonely person. He felt much like most ANBU members in that regard.
Thoughts of him led to thoughts of Minato and Kushina. She wondered how differently things would be if they were still alive and if Naruto was not the one carrying the Kyuubi.
As silly as it was, she regretted letting Kakashi go all those years ago. She was a child and had no clue about how she could have legitimately carried on a friendship with the boy, but it was not in her nature to let people go and this was not the first time she felt a pang of regret over how their friendship ended. Looking back, he was a boy that was in a lot of pain.
And I was a really weird, awkward, and pushy child. I'm lucky he didn't punt me across a street.
She shuddered at the memory.
Once Gai was done telling stories of his achievements and the benefits of embracing one's youth, he went to his sleeping bag and was out like a light. His deep snore echoed across the small campsite, but it was now much more peaceful in comparison.
Akio appeared much more at ease now that the Jounin was asleep. He patrolled the area at a leisurely pace and checked to make sure the refugees were settled and still sleeping.
Daisuke was at the corner of their camp, his backpack, kunai pouch, and shuriken bag discarded to the side. As hard as it was for her to sleep without a bed, it was even harder for him. It was never advised for a shinobi to remove their weapons when on a mission involving over shinobi, but he was incapable of sleeping with them strapped on.
At that moment, he was engrossed in a sketch he was working on and paying no attention to anything around him.
Well, I guess now's an okay time to talk to him. We don't need to stay petty with each other the rest of this mission. It's going to be long enough, as it is. She took a deep breath and approached him, "Hey, I'm sorry if I was bitchy earlier."
"I should be used to it by now, I guess," he replied without looking up.
"Gee, thanks."
"You're welcome, Shi-Shi-chan."
She frowned and sat down beside him, "I can tell something's bothering you and I can tell that it has something to do with that one guy, Rento. You don't have to tell me or anything, but I'd like it if whatever's wrong didn't translate to us fighting over stupid stuff the whole time."
Daisuke shrugged a shoulder, "There's not much to talk about."
She arched an eyebrow at him and looked at his sketch. It was a girl. Her face was covered with grime and sweat, but the smile he depicted her with was lovely.
Arashi sighed, "Well, I guess I'll go first - I got turned down and I'm not handling it well. I don't mean to be so quick to take that out on anyone else, but I haven't even had an appetite and I feel like I got punched in the stomach really, really hard. I'm worrying myself sick over how much I've screwed up and I want to be there, working stuff out instead of here." She swallowed over the lump in her throat. "Okay, your turn."
He snorted, "I never agreed to this exchange."
"You don't have to be an ass, y'know"
"Fine," he sniffed. "If you really want to know, there were five refugees, originally. There was a girl that went by the name 'Yori'. I took my time to make sure we weren't dealing with ninjas, since we don't have your weird sixth sense, and I gradually got her to open up to me a little. Things were going great, but right before we made our move to bring these guys in, they killed her. They saw her talking to me, got scared, and took her out because Rento thought she was a liability." He shrugged. "I keep thinking that if I worked faster and made a move ten minutes earlier, then she wouldn't have been murdered like that."
"Oh." Arashi tugged at her scarf, at a loss for words. "Is that who you're drawing?"
"Yeah. I said I'd draw something for her. It was a lie, but it made her smile. I guess it was the last thing that made her happy."
Akio paused near them, "If she wasn't killed at that point, then she would be with these guys, in chains and waiting to be delivered to her death. Would you feel less responsible if she lived a little longer, just for you to personally hand her over to be executed? This is better."
Daisuke frowned, "I know she would have died either way. I just can't stand the fact that she was killed by people that were supposed to be her friends. They were in this together, supposedly watching each other's backs. I can't stand traitors. Sure, death was inevitable for her, but that kind of death was unnecessary. It just bothers me more than it should."
"It's the kind of life we signed up for," Akio replied with a shrug.
"Yeah, it is," Arashi agreed, hesitantly.
It was a hard truth in their lives.
They lapsed into silence for a while.
She chewed on her lips, "You know, me and Itachi meet up to 'catch up'. It keeps us from growing apart too much and it's a good stress reliever. Maybe the three of us need to start doing that?"
"Oh how sweet!" Daisuke huffed. "It'll be like those awkward family get togethers where everyone fights."
Akio snorted.
"You know, every other three man squad stays close, if they're still alive, anyway. I want that for us. I don't want us to lose the friendship we've sorta just begun."
"Rejection makes somebody clingy," Daisuke teased.
"I will kick you in the teeth."
"I don't like sweets," Akio interjected, "So no dango."
Daisuke and Arashi eyed him.
"If we're going to meet up to keep in touch, we should at least have decent food to eat, even if you two argue the whole time."
Daisuke sniffed and turned away from them.
"Oh! We could invite Ibiki Sensei, too." She went through a list in her head of different restaurants and cafes she had been to in and around Konoha. "That way, we might get along a little better? He could mediate."
Akio nodded, "It's a pact, then."
Daisuke crossed his arms, "Just promise we won't end up like some of those squads that can't function properly without each other. I swear, it's like they share a brain or something."
"I don't see that happening with us," Arashi shook her head.
Several signatures entered her range and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end - they were Suna shinobi and they were moving in fast.
"Guys," she jumped to her feet. "Incoming - three!"
Daisuke cursed under his breath and started strapping bags and pouches back onto his body. Akio sprinted to the fire to extinguish it.
Just great! Arashi rushed over to Gai and shook his shoulder, "Taichou, incoming!"
He snorted away and shot up, groggily, "Huh?"
"Three Suna ninja!" She hissed.
He shook the sleep from his body and perked up, "Seems like we've got some trouble with a capital T coming!"
Seriously? You cheesy weirdo.
Daisuke formed a handseal and the chakra trapped in the paint activated all around him. In seconds, the four captives and the four shinobi blended into their surroundings and disappeared from sight.
Arashi shifted to another position, This jutsu is wonderful. Thank you, Daisuke.
Akio, Daisuke, and Gai directed the refugees away from the camp and made the area look abandoned - if it threw them from their trail, then it would grant them more time to plan a counter ambush.
We need to handle this, carefully. This isn't like the Forest of Death. These guys aren't going to be Genin, trying to make Chuunin. They're probably Jounin.
Two of the three held back, while one hovered around the perimeter of their abandoned campsite.
He has an earth affinity. Not a huge amount of chakra, but a good amount.
Just as the scout began to move away, a strangled cry came from one of the refugees - the boy had managed to work his gag loose, "Help! We're here! Help!"
Great.
Alright. That's it for chapter 29. I really hope that I didn't completely butcher Gai's character, but I've never really written him before and I wasn't sure about what I was doing. xD ah! The mission will be completed next chapter and hopefully it won't take me long to finish it.
Thank you to everyone that reads, favorites, and follows this fanfiction. It is all appreciated. If anyone has an opinion, a criticism, or a suggestion, then feel free to share it in a review or message. :) I'm open to all forms of feedback.
Nameless: I have to admit that I've always preferred calling him Gai. I just wanted to sort of see what the consensus was on it. :) As for Kakashi, at this point in his life, he's busy isolating himself. He's in his early 20s, a member of ANBU, and very busy with missions and dealing (poorly) with PTSD and depression. As much as I love him and miss having him as an active part in the story, this point in his life would not click well with Arashi as she is now.
Part 3 is a completely different situation, though. :P Thank you for your review!
Misora Asuka: Honestly, writing Itachi makes me sad. Just imagine if the massacre never happened, or if it was carried out by other people and he was allowed to stay? I'd be he would have ended up as Hokage - just imagine what sort of things he would have accomplished!
Sadly, in canon the massacre did happen and Itachi's story was nothing but tragic. :( Because of that, it transfers over into most fanfiction. It's hard to find a good AU involving Itachi still living in Konoha.
Thank you for your review!
Windschatten: Yes, Arashi got her feelings off her chest and now she gets to stress about it in embarrassment. xD It's just another step toward growing up for her and although it is kinda sad, it's necessary.
"Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been." - John Greenleaf Whittier
I'm glad that you noticed Kazika! With age, I'm getting to write him with added insights and a more mature perspective. He might have started off blowing snot bubbles, but he'll eventually be a character with depth by the time I'm done with him (hopefully). xD
I love Arashi's team, but when I think of them I think of a dysfunctional family or something like that. I mean, there are boys that when they see a girl that needs emotional support or if there's a guy making her uncomfortable, those boys will go right to her aid. With Akio and Daisuke, I think they'd sooner laugh in her face over her discomfort or not even notice that she's upset. They've come a long way, but they still have quite a distance to travel. haha
I hope this chapter turned out well and I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you for your review! I always love them. :)
Llyrica: I'm not saying when the massacre happens, but it is certainly soon! :)
I had suspicions that Itachi wasn't quite as evil as they made him out to be and when they revealed what was really up in the manga, I cried. It made me really fall in love with the character, even though I adored him as a villain.
Thank you for your review and I hope you like the next chapters! It won't be long before I get to work on part 3.
