Chapter Thirty-Four
Kotaro scratched his head as he looked at the prisoner from Sunagakure.
"Just one?" He asked. "That doesn't seem fair, sensei."
"Hokage-sama probably had a good reason for agreeing to trade three prisoners for this one, and these other four are worthless anyway. They wouldn't have been sent after us if there weren't expendable. There's little harm in returning them to their village, to take them all the way back to Konoha would be far too troublesome." Shikamaru explained.
Kotaro shook his head, "I don't know about you, but I think it stinks."
"It does stink. But it'd be troublesome to argue about it." Shikamaru said.
"She's pretty good looking though." Kotaro said.
"Yeah I guess." Shikamaru-sensei said. "Is that the right one?" He asked Chouji-sensei, who stood in front of him examining a picture.
"That's the woman we're here for." Chouji said. "Are you all right?" Chouji-sensei asked her as she approached them.
The young woman, whose short red hair stopped about an inch above her shoulders nodded. "I'm okay."
"They didn't abuse you in any way?" Shikamaru-sensei asked.
"Well considering what they fed me, I think that should count as a form of abuse." The woman said with a frown. "But I'm eager to get back to Suna."
"Then let's get moving." Shikamaru said.
Kotaro watched the line of Ame ninja retreat back into their own territory. "There's gotta be like two teams not counting the ones we just gave them. You don't think they might try something to get their prisoner back?"
"They're not our enemies, they have no reason to risk the lives of their ninja in an attempt to take us. " Shikamaru-sensei said. "Besides that a grand total of four teams would be a major loss for Ame if they failed to kill or capture us. Two Genin squads aren't that big a deal to Konoha."
Kotaro frowned, "So, who're you?" He asked the Suna woman.
"I'm Syako!" She said cheerfully.
"Uh-huh . . . I mean what's so great about you?" Kotaro asked.
Syako frowned, "Uh . . . what?"
"Well I mean are you some kind of ninja celebrity, or a princess, or a porn star-"
"Wouldn't that fall under 'celebrity'?" Tomoko piped in, but Kotaro ignored her.
"I mean why're you worth seven prisoners?" The boy pressed.
Syako shrugged. "I'unno." She said. "I've been in prison for a long time. Ten years they told me, but I haven't gotten that much older, so I don't think it really was ten years. They kidnapped me in the night and took me away."
"Kidnapped you in the night?" Kotaro gawked, "What kind of ninja are you?"
Syako didn't answer for a long time, then finally she said, "What, who, me?"
"Yeah. And . . . duh." Yomiko spoke up.
"Oh I'm no ninja." Syako said.
Now Kotaro was annoyed. "Okay, why the blazes did we just risk our lives to rescue her if she's not even a ninja?"
"I'unno." Syako shrugged.
"I wasn't asking you!" Kotaro snapped at the redhead.
"Because the Hokage told us to. Obviously Tsunade-sama feels that Syako here is important enough to trade Ame's ninjas for." Shikamaru-sensei said.
"Are you like a doctor or something?" Tomoko asked.
"Or a scientist?" Nao threw in.
Kotaro glared at him. "You think she could be a scientist?"
"Hatake . . ." Shikamaru said in a warning tone.
"Oh I'm none of that. I don't know why I was kidnapped in the first place. It's not like I'm super rich or anything. I'm nobody famous . . . I'm not even a ninja." She scratched her cheek. "Well . . . at least I don't think I'm a ninja. Maybe I was? Do you think I was?"
Kotaro stared at her. "You're crazy." He decided.
"Uh-huh, I think so." Syako nodded. "Let me have one of your knives, maybe I'll remember what kind of ninja I was!" She said excitedly.
"Whoa, no way! Somebody get the crazy woman off me!" Kotaro cried as Syako lunged for one of his kunai. As she did so, her nicely sized chest rubbed against his face and he decided this wasn't so bad. "Never mind, I'll hold her off myself." He said.
"Yeah right." Shikamaru-sensei said, pulling the woman off of Kotaro, who sighed wistfully.
"Okay, I probably wasn't a fighting ninja. Let me try and see if I can make healing happen then."
"Healing happen?" Nao scratched his chin.
"Well that little boy with the mask has a rather bad nose bleed." Syako said, "Let me see if I can help him."
"Oh my." Daisuke groaned and began to use a healing jutsu on Kotaro, who hadn't even realized he'd been bleeding. "Well if you hadn't shoved your breasts in his face this might not have happened."
"Jealous, Daisuke?" Tomoko jeered.
Kotaro was a little surprised Syako could tell through his mask that he was bleeding. Maybe she had been a medic. Or maybe she'd done it intentionally, just for fun.
Either way he liked her a little more now.
Yukio spat blood on the ground and glared at his sensei, "You don't have to hit that hard!"
"Tell it to the enemy when they murder you!" Temari spat.
"Shiroi never hits that hard!" He protested.
"This defense cant be just for her," Temari said, "You've got to make it work no matter who's attacking you or it's a waste of time to learn it. Anyway don't assume that just because she favors the Gentle Fist she can't get rough on you. Her sensei'san Uchiha. "
"You said we were ready for the Chuunin exams." Ryu said. "Why train like this?"
"I was just being nice." Temari clarified and Yukio scowled at her.
"Well can't we take it slow? You're going way too hard on me." Yukio said.
Temari scoffed, "I've hit you harder than this!"
"Yeah but never so many times in a row!" Yukio protested.
"Buck up, be a man. Your real enemies won't hesitate to hit you as much as it takes to kill you."
"Hey, you're the Jounin here, I'm not even a Chuunin yet!" Yukio protested.
Temari shook her head, "Fine, take ten. But when you're done catching your breath, my poor little Genin, I want you back here ready to work! Ryu, stop laughing at Yukio and get down here, it's your turn!"
"What? Sensei I cant even control sand like Yukio!"
"I know that, now get down here." Temari-sensei sighed. "You kids, I swear it's like you think we adults haven't got a clue about what we're doing."
"Sensei, what are you doing?" Kyoko asked.
"Search me. Haven't got a clue." Temari winked. Yukio gawked at her.
She'd better be joking, his honor was on the line!
"All right Ryu, I want you to try using your Taijutsu on me." Temari-sensei said.
"Why?" Ryu asked.
"Why not?" Temari demanded.
"I don't want to die." Ryu said.
"Y'know you might think you're being funny, but you're not. You're not scouts at camp, you're soldiers. Young soldiers, but soldiers none-the-less. You're going to fight in this war, and if you don't take it and your training seriously you're going to die in this war. You want to cry about some scraped knees and bruised tummies you can go home right now and do not come back."
"I don't just have a bruised tum-er stomach, you broke it, sensei!" Yukio said.
"Good, more rations for the rest of us!" Kyoko snapped, shoving Yukio aside, "I'm tired of you always trying to be a wise guy and disrespecting sensei! She's trying to help you win the feud you had to get yourself into! This Hyuga girl's got two years seniority over you and the benefit of a Bloodline Trait, if Sensei tells you to take a hit then take the hit, Yukio!"
"Oh shut up you wannabe. You just don't want her to start on your faults so you suck up to her like a leech!" Yukio scowled. He was not a wise guy, he just understood the importance of keeping the mood light in the squad, and he hadn't really even told a joke that time.
Kyoko shook her head, "You'd be dead now if it weren't for her."
"Who told you about that?" Yuko scowled.
"Both of you shut up!" Temari commanded, "Ryu come at me with your best Taijutsu, don't worry about being fast or slow, just do your best."
Ryu grumbled and launched his attack.
Yukio couldn't help but think that Ryu did move rather slowly.
He glanced over at the still angry Kyoko and shook his head. Even if he didn't like Temari-sensei all the time she was right most of the time and this time was no exception. They were not kids at play. Technically they weren't even kids anymore, they'd left their childhood behind when they accepted their forehead protectors, and the life of the Shinobi. This was his team and neither of them could defeat Shiroi, he had the best chance of it and he could only do it if he mastered this defense Temari-sensei was trying to teach him.
He supposed it wouldn't kill him to cut her a little slack . . . but she still wasn't as good as Kenji-sensei. He hated the way everyone told him she was good. She wasn't good. She was a specialist ninja, specialist ninja shouldn't be able to teach ninja that didn't specialize the same way they did.
He folded his arms. He'd try to listen to her and not make jokes. But he couldn't guarantee anything.
"So . . . like how far away is Sunagakure?" Syako asked.
"Like ten minutes closer than it was the last time you like asked?" Yomiko offered.
"Yeah but like . . . are we like there yet?" Syako asked.
"Like, I'm so like totally sure that we'll be there like, when we get there?" Yomiko assured her.
"Alright, if I hear one more 'like' out of either of you-" Shikamaru-sensei was saying but Kotaro shook his head and held up a hand.
"Please sensei. They're conversing in their 'dumb woman' dialect, it is best if we do not disturb them."
"I'm not dumb!" Syako cried.
"You like, forgot to say like." Yomiko teased. "And anyway Kotaro I was just making fun of her, I don't really talk that way."
"You like make fun of like everyone don't you?" Nao asked and Kotaro laughed.
Yomiko glared at both of them, "Why's it funny when he does it?"
"It isn't." Shikamaru-sensei said, "Everyone drop it. Syako-san is our honored guest, she's been through a lot and she is not stupid. Act like mature Genin or I'll turn this team around right now and we'll all go back to Konohagakure."
"Well you've got to see your girlfriend and her baby, we're just along for the ride. That'll hurt you more than us, sesnei." Kotaro pointed out.
Yomiko scowled, "No it won't! Now shut up Taro, we're going to Sunagakure and we're going to see that baby!"
"Ooh a baby?" Syako cried, "Can I see it too?"
Shikamaru-sensei held his forehead.
"I wanna get in on that too." Daisuke said, "I gotta see this spawn of Shikamaru for myself."
"You know there might not even be a baby. Maybe it's all a plot, maybe Temari just wants to get me to Sunagakure." Shikamaru-sensei said.
"Oh Temari's baby? It's okay then, I can already see her whenever I want." Syako said.
"Really?" Yomiko asked.
"Yeah." The busty red head said with a shrug.
"Is she cute? Does she look like her mommy?" Yomiko squealed.
"I'm not telling you." Syako said.
"What? Why not?"
"You were like teasing me and stuff." Syako shrugged.
"Oh grow up!" Yomiko cried, "I'm sorry! Now tell me about the baby!"
"Just like, have your own and you'll know all about them." Syako shook her head.
"I'm twelve!" Yomiko cried.
"So? I didn't mean today." Syako said. "Now who's the stupid one?"
"I'm still leaning towards it being you." Yomiko grumbled.
"Last warning." Shikamaru-sensei said, "If you cant get along with Syako-san we're going back right now."
"Okay sensei . . . I'm sorry Syako-sama." Yomiko bowed.
"So if we just make fun of her some more we can go home?" Kotaro asked.
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "If Yomiko makes fun of her we go home. If you guys make fun of her we force you to take the night watch and she'll stay up and talk to you to keep you company." Shikamaru said.
"That's cruel and unusual punishment sensei!" Naomasa protested.
Everyone walked in silence for a moment, then Shikamaru-sensei of all people said "So . . . this baby . . . is she cute?"
To Be Continued . . .
Note: I had not planned on putting a chapter up sunday, but since the story has gotten over 100 reviews, I do this by way of celebration.
As ever thanks for your support, all!