Shikamaru unrolled the missive; a summons from Tsunade to Naruto.
"Looks like it's time to head home," Shikamaru sighed.
Gaara stepped in, holding Naruto up, who was now wearing a gourd on her back like Gaara, her katana under it.
"What happened?" Shikamaru asked.
"Apparently the Kyuubi likes to fuck with things," Naruto said shortly, legging go of Gaara and limping to the bed before sinking down. "Magnet Release and Dust Release," she informed them. "He promised it would be the last time that he'd fuck with my DNA."
"Oh, that's cool!" Kiba said, grinning broadly. "Now you can just stand there and do nothing while you're stopping other ninja or bandits!"
Naruto sweatdropped. "Kiba, you and the Kyuubi have eerily similar minds, you know that?"
Kiba's grin slid off of his face.
"Okay, well, Tsunade sent a summons for you," Shikamaru said.
"Oh, hey, Shikamaru!" Naruto grinned brilliantly. "I forgot you were here. How was your stay?"
Shikamaru pinched his nose. "WE NEED TO GO BACK TO KONOHA!"
A ringing silence.
"Okay!" Naruto said with a yawn. "Just... One more night here..."
She opened her eyes after a minute of shut-eye. "Hey, wait, I can send a -"
Shikamaru hit her pressure point on the back of her neck, and she was out like a light.
~:~
They were zooming over the sand dunes, a gleeful expression on Kiba's face.
"What happens when you run out of chakra?" Shikamaru called over the wind.
"I'll stop before then!" Naruto called. "Don't want to be caught unawares, after all! Not like last time!"
That was a very good point. Luckily, Gaara had been thoughtful enough to give them scrolls to carry their belongings; each of their backpacks were designated for something. Kiba's was the food, Shika's was the water (because nobody really thought bandits would go after him), Saki's the clothes (because lab coat or not, you touch Saki's clothes and she'll kill you), Naruto's the weapons, and Neji was just enjoying himself.
They sailed across the desert quickly, ignoring the hot sun that beat upon them. Naruto made it to the line, then floated the sand down and let it trickle back into her gourd. "I'm painting my gourd orange and blue," she announced. "And I'm going to keep orange and blue paint with me in case I need to paint it again."
"I'm still wondering how you're even related to Gaara," Kiba said slowly as they began walking, relishing the change as they traveled through Ame no Kuni.
"I'm related to him because a) we're jinchuuriki siblings, b) we're both Uzumaki, and c)... Well, we both have blood red hair?"
"Did you find out what you wanted to know about Akasuna no Sasori?" asked Shikamaru. Naruto's face darkened.
"Two words. Living puppets," she said, grimly. "Apparently he can transform the bones of humans into steel, possibly due to Magnet Release. I'm not clear on the details, because Rasa hasn't witnessed it yet, but I really don't want to cross paths with the guy anytime soon."
"Yeah, that wouldn't be good." Shikamaru paused. "Are we going after Sasuke?"
Naruto tripped over a rock, but steadied herself.
"Let's talk about that later," Naruto offered quickly. "So, how long do you want to stay in Konoha?"
"Two weeks, tops?" Shikamaru asked.
"A month," Kiba replied.
"It doesn't matter," Neji replied dismissively.
"I'm not letting you leave without my awesomeness," Saki winked, draping herself over Naruto.
Shikamaru bit his lip.
"Kiba, what do you think about taking a break from traveling for a while?" Shikamaru asked as they walked further into Ame no Kuni. Rain drenched them to the pore.
Naruto shivered, a feeling of deep foreboding entering her.
"I shouldn't be here." She stilled. "Guys, we need to go. Now!"
"'Fraid it's a little late for that. Katsu!"
Naruto brought her sword out and dodged the bomb. Bakahatsu no Deidara seemed unusually gleeful as he threw down bomb after bomb.
"Run!" she yelled at her friends.
"No." Saki's eyes swirled, changing into Mangekyou form.
And then, a giant green form formed around them.
"Susano'o!" Saki grinned. She'd taken her glasses off. "Time Warp: Spinning Second!" Time slowed. It didn't stop, but it did slow.
"Now, let's run!" Saki cried. "Naruto, my Susano'o is weightless!"
Naruto nodded, and without a backwards glance, Naruto formed sand under them and shot off, towards the nearest border.
~:~
Saki's Susano'o fell to pieces when Deidara was no longer visible in the sky. Kurama supplied Naruto with a steady supply of chakra, and she made sure all of them were secured to the cloud of sand.
They slowed down near the border of Hi no Kuni, but didn't stop until Naruto literally crashed into a tree.
"I think it's safe to say we're good," Saki muttered, staying where she lay.
"Sorry, guys... Just... So tired..." Naruto yawned again.
"We're going to have to use your sand cloud again tomorrow," Shikamaru muttered.
"I know," Naruto replied. "But I think we'll be fi- i- i- ine!" she yawned again. "For the night, at least."
They all took shelter under trees, and despite their exhaustion, none of them slept well.
~:~
They passed Tanzaku Gai before they got off the sand cloud, but didn't dare all fall asleep at the same time. That had been a narrow escape, even with Saki's Sharingan.
Naruto took the first watch, barely managing to stay awake and even falling asleep a time or two before jerking awake.
Neji relieved her for second shift, and on and on it went. Silence prevailed.
They made it to Konoha, dead on their feet. None of them spoke, and their appearances were such that Izumo actually had to ask who they were; but looking at Saki's coat and Kiba's fang marks and Neji's head, it was confirmed rather quickly.
"You guys look like crap," observed Tsunade when they got to her office, civilians quickly getting out of their way. They didn't exactly smell like daisies, and Shikamaru's hair was down and tangled, Saki had dried blood all over her face under her eyes as well as leaves and twigs tangled in her hair, and Naruto had blood all over her face, and tangles in her hair.
Tsunade grimaced as she smelled them.
"Tori, show them to the jounin lounge. I'm sure there's a few beds in ANBU HQ that they can use, right? And showers? Definitely showers. Also, a trim for Shikamaru and a cut for the girls?"
Tori bowed and herded the group out.
Zombielike, they shuffled out.