Chapter 53: Awase

A/N: I know I haven't updated this story in a while, but let's just say that I've been caught up in my Kingdom Hearts and Hellsing Fanfic.

Sorry if it's been a while, but here's the next chapter.

I don't own Naruto or Final Fantasy7. I simply own Mikomi, Yuri and Usagi while Bakuto Masaki owns his OCs and Yumi Seiji owns hers.

"Talking"

"Thinking"

"Usagi Talking"

"Aerith Talking"

Enjoy!

/

Mikomi laughed as she ate her ramen.

She had been listening to Jiraiya as he told what he had been doing these past twelve years.

It seemed like he was doing more than just research for his books and tracking the Akatsuki.

Cloud found some of his tales to be amusing. He never laughed, but he would let a smirk slip.

As they were talking, Mikomi had a hard time eating her ramen.

Since her right arm was injured by Kisame and she was right handed, that meant that her hand kept shaking every time she lift her chopsticks up.

Sighing in defeat, she placed them back into her bowl.

"Man, I wish my arm would heal up. I need food!"

Jiraiya saw this and picked up her chopsticks for her.

"Here you go" he said.

"I can feed you like you were a kid again"

Mikomi gave him a dull glare as he held her chopsticks in front of her.

"Here comes the airplane"

Mikomi just bitch smacked him with her left hand.

"My left arm is still working, just so you know" she said.

Jiraiya grumbled as he rubbed his face.

"That's my girl" Cloud said as he ate his ramen.

As they were eating, Mikomi remembered that Jiraiya had to search for Tsunade.

Their village couldn't be without a Hokage for very long.

"Hey, Jiraiya. When are you going to search for Tsunade?"

Jiraiya shrugged.

"Don't know" he said.

"I'll probably leave soon. The village elders want me to do it soon, but I want to find your brother first. I plan on training him while we're traveling"

Mikomi made a face at the mention of the village elders.

She absolutely hated them.

They felt that since work alongside the Hokage, that meant that they had power over everyone. They used everyone like tools and treated her and Naruto like monsters.

Homura and Koharu weren't so bad, but it was Danzo that was the problem.

Whenever she was around him, she just wanted to slug the guy.

He always felt that Sarutobi's way of ruling the village made their nation soft.

Everything about that man pissed her off. From the way that he dressed to the way that he talked.

She snapped her chopsticks in anger as she thought of him.

Jiraiya sweat dropped at the sight.

He nearly forgot how much she hated Danzo.

"Anyway" he said.

"Where's that annoying little brother of yours? I need him to come with if I want to find Tsunade"

"Give him a few minutes" Cloud said.

"He'd never start his day without eating ramen. I wouldn't be surprised if he suddenly showed up right now"

As soon as he said that, the village knuckle head appeared next to them and attached himself to Cloud.

"Ni-san!"

"See?" Cloud said.

He tried to pull Naruto off, but he was like a koala bear. He was strapped to his side, and he wasn't going to let go.

Naruto was all grins when he saw his older brother.

He thought that he would be leaving to go back to his world, but he was thrilled to see him at his favorite place.

He rubbed his head against his side and laughed a little.

"What are you doing here, Ni-san? I thought you had to go back to your village?"

"Had a slight change in plans" Cloud said.

"Our friend, Rufus lost sight of Sephiroth, so we have to wait until he's found. So in the meantime, we're staying here"

Naruto cheered at hearing that.

"Hurray!"

He spotted his sister sitting next to Cloud and nervously looked at her.

He was worried that she was still mad at him for that little towel stunt he pulled on her yesterday.

But when he saw all of the bandages that covered the right side of her body, he flipped out.

"Nee-Chan! What happened to you?"

Mikomi rubbed her head nervously.

She didn't want to tell him that she was attacked by a group that was after her and her brother. It would scare the poor boy.

The only thing she could do was lie to him.

"Oh, I uh, just got hurt when I was fixing up a roof. I lost my footing and fell off, but I'm ok"

Naruto just looked at her.

He knew when she lied to him, but he wasn't going to press her for the truth.

As long as she was alright, that's all that mattered to him.

The only thing he was worried about was if she was still mad at him.

"Are you, uh…still mad at me for yesterday?" he asked.

Mikomi had really forgotten about the little towel stunt.

Sure, she was mad at him, but she really couldn't blame him. It was an accident after all.

"I'm over it" she said.

"But don't you ever do something like that again"

She, along with Cloud sent him a nasty glare.

Naruto laughed nervously.

Jiraiya was getting annoyed that he was being ignored, so he cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention.

"Oh, you're still here" Mikomi said dully.

Naruto's eyes went wide went he saw the hermit.

"Pervy sage!" he cried.

A tick mark appeared in Jiraiya's forehead.

"It's always 'pervy sage' this and 'pervy sage' that" he thought.

"Hey, Naruto. I was just about to look for you" he said.

"I'm going on this little trip to find someone, and I was wondering if you would want to co-"

"No way!"

Jiraiya looked surprised.

He didn't think he would say no right away.

"Why not?"

Naruto gave him a disgusted look.

"Cause knowing you, you're probably going off to find research for your book" He said.

Mikomi and Cloud resisted the urge to smirk.

For being a dimwit, the kid sure picked up on things.

Jiraiya just gave him a face.

"It's not that kind of trip" he said.

"I'm searching for a pretty woman and I need you to come with. Women a suckers for kids"

"All the more reason for me not to go" Naruto said.

"Besides, I need to see if Kakashi-Sensei will teach me that Chidori trick that he taught Sasuke. I'm not going to let him be better than me"

Mikomi completely forgot that Kakashi was in a coma because of her.

He pushed her out of the way so she wouldn't get caught up in Itachi's sharingan.

She became depressed really fast.

"I put the man that I love most into a coma. I must be the worst teammate ever!"

Cloud on the other hand was thrilled.

With Kakashi in a coma, that meant he wouldn't be hitting on Mikomi.

Sure, he was grateful that he saved Mikomi, but he still hated him.

With him out of the way, that was one less guy that would hit on his dearest friend.

"Now to just take care of Gai" he thought.

Jiraiya was getting really ticked off that Naruto wouldn't come with.

If he didn't go with him, then he had to bring a whole Anbu squad with him and he didn't want that.

It was time to pull out his trump card.

"A new Jutsu, you say?" he asked.

"Well, I know this pretty awesome justu that would make the Chidori look pathetic compared to it. I was going to teach you it while we were traveling, but if you're not going, then I'll just ask Sasuke"

The changed Naruto's mind right away.

"Why didn't you say that before? Hang on, I'll go get my stuff! Don't you go anywhere, Pervy Sage!"

He ran out of the hut and went to grab his stuff.

Mikomi and Cloud just sweat dropped at the sight.

"That boy has a one track mind" Cloud said.

"You got that right" Mikomi replied.

She looked at her godfather.

"You happy now?" she asked.

Jiraiya shrugged.

"Not really" he said.

"I would be happy if a really cute girl came by"

As he said that, a young woman how appeared to be in her mid twenties came walking by.

She had long silky brown hair, black eyes, and wore brown civilian clothes.

She looked really cute, but overall, she looked lost.

The girl kept looking around her as if she was looking for something.

Jiraiya picked this up right away.

"Guess it's my lucky day!" he said.

He pushed his spiky hair back and looked at Cloud and Mikomi.

"How do I look?" he asked them.

"Stupid" they said in unison.

Jiraiya just gave them a face.

"Whatever, you're jealous you can't be like me"

Whatever"

Jiraiya just brushed the away and walked over to the distressed lady.

"Excuse miss, but are you alright?"

The woman looked at him and blushed slightly.

"Oh, pardon me!" she said.

"I-I'm sort of new here and I have no idea where I'm at. I was suppose to me my friends here in the leaf village, but I can't tell where I'm at with all this rubble"

She rubbed her head nervously.

"I must look foolish, don't I?"

Jiraiya laughed innocently.

"Don't be ridiculous" he said.

"Of course anyone would get lost with the village as it is. Heck, I even get lost myself. Why don't I show you around and help you find your friends?"

The woman blushed slightly.

"Oh, I wouldn't want to be a bother to you" she said.

Jiraiya just grinned at her.

"Nonsense, I don't have anything to do right now. Besides, I can't let a cute little thing such as yourself get lost, I would be a stab to my pride"

The woman giggled.

"You're very kind" she said.

"I'm Awase"

"Awase, what a lovely name" Jiraiya said.

"I'm the one and only, Jiraiya!"

Awase gasped a little.

"Jiraiya? As in one of the legendary Sanin?"

Jiraiya grinned.

"One in the same, my dear"

Awase blushed madly.

"I'm deeply honored that you would like to help me"

Jiraiya held out his arm.

"Then what are we waiting for?" he asked.

Awase gently took his arm and walked along side him as he showed her around.

/

Mikomi had a dull look on her face as she watched her godfather.

"Seriously?" she asked.

"Does he always have to think about girls?"

"You've known him longer than I have" Cloud said.

"You figure it out"

Mikomi just sighed and paid for their meal.

"I might as well find Naruto" she said.

"Knowing him, he's probably packing every single thing that he owns"

Cloud got up from his stool and stood in front of Mikomi.

"Come on" he said.

Mikomi rolled her eyes and jumped on his back.

"I can walk you know" she said.

"Barely" Cloud replied.

"You can't take a step without tripping over something"

Mikomi grumbled as they walked.

/

After arguing with her blond friend, Mikomi was finally allowed to walk on her own.

"I swear you're worse than my dad" she said.

Cloud really didn't say anything.

He was more occupied with checking their surroundings. Just because Yuri said the Akatsuki wouldn't strike in the village again, didn't mean he was going to relax.

From what he learned during his stay in the village, anything could happen.

He had a feeling that they would attack if they left their guard down.

He had lost two friends due to his carelessness; he was not going to let that happen again.

Mikomi looked around the village. Since it was still in shambles, there really wasn't much to do around here.

"Man, I wish they could liven this place up a bit"

Just then, Yuri and Bakuto came running towards them.

Well, it was mostly Bakuto running away from Yuri.

"Wait, Bakuto! You can't leave the house without an escort!" Yuri cried.

Bakuto looked at Yuri with horror.

He really wasn't afraid of anything, but there were times where Yuri would creep him out.

He could only tolerate so much from her.

"Go away! I can take care of myself!"

He spotted his rival and felt he found his beckon of hope. If Yuri saw her favorite goddaughter, then she would just have to leave him alone.

"I know she's my rival and I want nothing to do with her. But desperate times call for desperate measures"

He ran up to her and grabbed her arms.

"You have to keep her away from me!" he pleaded.

"If I hear another word come out of her mouth, I think I'm going to kill myself!"

Mikomi looked at him dully.

She wasn't remotely surprised by his reaction.

Yuri had a tendency to break people easily.

Yuri ran up to them.

"Bakuto! Slow down!"

When she saw her goddaughter, Bakuto went out of her mind.

"'Komi-chan!" she squealed.

She went up to her and pulled her into a tight bear hug.

"So this is where you were hiding off t, huh? I should have known you would sneak out of the house like that. You sneaky little fox you"

Mikomi desperately tried to get out of Yuri's grasp. Since she was still injured, that meant Yuri was making them worse.

Cloud pulled her back so Mikomi could breathe.

"Knock it off. She's still injured, remember?" he asked.

Yuri laughed nervously.

"Opps" she said.

Bakuto rolled his eyes and looked at his rival.

"So what are you doing out here?"

Mikomi shrugged.

"Nothing much. I just asked Jiraiya a few questions and ate ramen with him" she said.

"He was suppose to be leaving with Naruto to find Tsunade, but…let's just say that he got a little distracted and is walking around the village"

"You mean he found a girl?" Yuri asked.

Mikomi nodded.

As if to further her point, Jiraiya came walking by with Awase still holding his arm.

She seemed to be laughing at something he said.

"Oh, who's that?" Yuri asked.

"That chick Jiraiya picked up" Mikomi said.

"Her name is Awase"

As Yuri looked at Awase, her mind went downhill.

" Hm. Too bad a prefer the fellas" she thought.

"Then again, I could always draw a mustache on her"

(A/N: Sorry, I saw this on Two and A Half Men and I just had to use it)

She bit her finger as she thought of this.

Everyone saw that look in her eyes and they all took a step back.

Whenever she looked like that, they knew it couldn't be good.

Jiraiya walked up to them with Awase in tow.

"Hey guys, I'd like to introduce you to Awase" he said.

Awase waved at them.

"Awase, these are a couple of friends of mine. This is my cousin, Yuri. My goddaughter, Mikomi. And her two friends, Cloud and Bakuto"

They all waved lamely.

They weren't up to being introduced to Jiraiya's new swing.

An evil smirk appeared on Mikomi's face as she thought of something.

"Not to be rude or anything" she said to Awase.

"But you can get pregnant just by talking to him. He's a real perv"

Jiraiya looked appalled while the rest busted out laughing. Well, it was mainly Yuri and Mikomi laughing, but Bakuto and Cloud wore a smirk on their faces.

Jiraiya was sputtering as he pointed a finger at his goddaughter.

How could she say that to him while he was with a cute girl?

"I-I am not a pervert!" he bellowed.

"H-how could you say that?"

Awase just laughed.

"I'm sure she didn't mean any harm" she said.

"She was just trying to be silly"

"You could say that" Mikomi said dryly.

Awase laughed a little until she looked at Bakuto.

She had this strange look on her face as she looked at him that it creped him out a little.

"What?" he asked annoyed.

Awase snapped out of it and blushed embarrassingly.

"Oh, nothing" she said.

"You just remind me of someone"

Bakuto just shrugged it off.

Awase smiled kindly at Jiraiya.

"I had so much fun, Mater Jiraiya, but I should be going" she said.

"I have a feeling that my friends haven't arrived here yet, so I'm just going to wait for them back at our hotel that's off near the border of the village"

Jiraiya looked a little sad that his little gal pal was leaving so soon.

But then again, he needed to leave with Naruto so they could find Tsunade.

"I see" he said dramatically.

"Then I wish you farewell and that you have a safe journey. Our time together will forever be cherished in my heart"

Mikomi made a gagging face to the others when the two weren't looking.

"Jiraiya can be a real kiss up sometimes" Usagi said.

Awase waved goodbye to them and left.

Jiraiya sighed sadly when she left.

"Oh get over it" Yuri said.

"I'm sure you're bound to find another hot chick when you go find Tsunade"

Jiraiya mulled it over.

"You're probably right" he said.

"Speaking of which, where is that knuckle head?"

"Hey guys!"

They all turned around to see Naruto.

"I'm all set for the trip! Let's get going!"

Mikomi sweat dropped when she saw her brother's back pack.

It had to be about the same size as he was and was filled to the bring.

Naruto tugged on it as he tried to get to his friends.

Jiraiya sweat dropped as well.

"You do realize we're going to be gone for a few days, not a whole year, you know"

Mikomi just pinched the bridge of his nose.

"That's my brother for you"

/

As Awase walked from the village gates, she looked around to see if anyone was near.

When she saw that she was alone, she walked deep within the forest.

She was far within the trees; she looked at the group that was hidden within the shadows.

"What do you have to report?" the leader asked.

Awase's casual carefree expression became cold and emotionless.

"The whole village is in shambles" she said.

"Security is very limited and they're left wide open. It's the perfect opportunity to strike"

The figure grinned evilly.

"Excellent" they said.

Awase looked at her superior.

"And that's not the only thing" she said.

"It seems that there's a cloud ninja staying here as well. Someone you might find interesting"

"Oh? Who would that be?"

"Bakuto Masaki"

The figure shifted a little.

"Bakuto you say?"

A set of cold blue eyes opened.

"That is very interesting"

The leader laughed evilly.

"Excellent, this will make my plans even more interesting"

The leader stood up and looked at the others.

"We'll put our plans into motion within two days. In the meantime, prepair yourselves"

The group laughed darkly.

Awase smirked evilly.

"For a legendary Sanin" she said.

"Master Jiraiya can be really clueless"

It seems that the Hidden Leaf Village wasn't out of the woods yet.

/

A/N: Looks like Jiraiya just put the village into deeper water. Who is this mysterious group and why is the leader interested in Bakuto?

You'll just have to review to find out.

Ja ne!