Tsunade remembered the days she loathed the position of Hokage, and the scathing refusals to the position from her side, with fondness as she stared at the hat. Oh, life had a way to to bite her in the ass, that much she knew. From being a doctor afraid of blood, to an alcoholic who couldn't get drunk, deep down she knew that this whole Hokage-thing would circle back to her.
With a sigh, she lifted the hat and planted it on her head. So much for washing and styling her hair this morning. She should have gotten Shizune to transform into her and do this instead.
Tsunade didn't like the attention, didn't like to stare at the faces of her responsibilities. She loathed the formalities and the banquet with the council and the village elders.
Tsunade especially didn't want to think about the expensive delicacies and sake they would be eating and drinking tonight while the villagers sat in their partly restored homes.
Not everything was bad though, she had to admit. She didlike nodding at Danzo's pinched expression and thanking him for honoring her and she felt ten years younger as she assured the old demon she would take care of Konoha from now on. Oh, there would be bottles opened later with Jiraiya to celebrate the memory of Danzo congratulating her.
She also liked the pastries and fresh bread she received from the bakery, and the fairly large and solemn painting she had received from another family. The former had a 'Thank you'-note and the latter got delivered by Shinji. The girl had shuffled her feet, cleared her throat several times before she managed to congratulate Tsunade and fled.
Tsunade really liked how her presence still brought fear to the eyes of even the boldest Genin.
Jiraiya grinned up at her from his seat on the ground, surrounded by scrolls Tsunade wasn't sure needed to be thrown out or not. There were crumbs in his beard, his sleeves were dotted with ink and he was making notes in one of his pervy books.
Hidden in his coat were the sealed scrolls the two of them had worked in every spare moment alone. No one but Tsunade and Jiraiya could open and read them, and no one else would know of their existence.
The future of Konoha is written in four lengths of paper, Tsunade thought bitterly. What a world.
"You're coming with me, Lackey."
"L-lackey?" Jiraiya spluttered, "I'm currently the only Seals-master, the head of Konoha's entire spy-network, the Toad-Sage-"
"Whatever Lackey," Tsunade kicked him and turned to pull on the white robes, leaving her teammate sulking, "Come on, we need to get going."
Without waiting, she exited the office and swept down the stairs. Shinobi lounging in the hall jumped to alert when she arrived. Shizune smiled at her, standing near some Jonin her own age. She was part of Tsunade's entourage: a group of shinobi and civilians from various parts of Konoha to really push the image of a 'People's-Hokage' down Konoha's throat. Tsunade didn't like it, not that anyone had asked her.
"Master, are you ready?" Shizune asked, walking up to her. Tsunade nodded and glanced at the rest. They stared back with a mix of concern and glee.
One guy jumped in through the window, chewing on a senbon- the medic in Tsunade screeched-, and waved a scroll around.
"Lady Tsunade," he called, "We got a delay. Five to ten minutes."
The hall groaned. Tsunade huffed, "And why is that?"
The man scratched his head, grinning sheepishly, "Well, turns out one of the elders is missing. We sent ANBU to find him."
Tsunade bit back a few curses, "Well, send more. I want this to be over with as soon as possible-"
"What Hokage-sama means," Shizune jumped in, quite literally and figuratively," is that it would be helpful if more people helped in the search so the esteemed elder can be found faster."
The man grinned, "Can't do that. Only ANBU are allowed to search for him and they got a lot of other stuff to do as well."
Tsunade gritted her teeth, "Then get me something to drink, we'll be here for a while."
Shizune looked between them, "It can't take that long, right?"
The man shrugged. Tsunade sat down on the nearest chair and crossed her legs, "It will take however long that old man wants it to take and I doubt he's in a hurry to see me wear this hat."
A nearby shinobi put a low table in front of her and placed a bottle with some cups on it. Tsunade memorized his face so she could promote him as soon as she was allowed.
Shizune sighed and looked at the man, who stared at Tsunade with fascination, "What's your name?"
The man blinked at her, "Genma. Genma Shiranui, at your service."
"I'm Shizune-" she introduced herself and abruptly choked, "Genma?"
"Y-yes?" he replied bewildered. Shizune pointed at him, fury in her eyes, "You threw me in the Naka river when we were kids!"
Genma's eyes grew round. A few shinobi startled at her exclamation. Shizune didn't care, she stomped closer, "I almost drowned, you miserable potato."
"Oh-" Genma jumped to the floor, "you're that Shizune!"
"I should throw you in the river-" Shizune burst, already rolling up her sleeves, "see how you like it!"
Tsunade leaned back, sipping her sake, as she watched the devolving argument with interest. This was another thing she liked about this day: old grudges.
"What did I miss?" Jiraiya appeared, dragging a chair to sit besides her. Various shinobi jumped. Jiraiya frowned at the chaos in the room. Tsunade handed him a full cup and kept watching.
An empty office in the Hokage Tower, around the same time~
Ibiki felt warm. The walls of the office seemed to close in on him. Ibiki had to actively remind himself that he who he was. It didn't matter that Danzo himself was lecturing him and once again threatening to take his student away. He was Ibiki Morino, Head of the Torture & Interrogation squad in Konoha. He could handle this like the brutal shinobi he was.
Except... Ibiki resisted the urge to squirm. Danzo had long since derailed and Ibiki had lost most of his interest when the man first mentioned 'the priorities of the village'. It seemed that old age brought repetitiveness to everyone. Still, he kept his back straight and ears open.
"The Ketsueki is not fit by any means to join the normal Corps." Danzo said again.
Ibiki didn't blink, "I have faith my students. They have defied expectations before, I'm sure they can do it again."
Danzo pursed his lips, "Your students? Only one is actually learning from you, right?"
Ibiki didn't reply, but tightened his fist behind his back. Danzo didn't seem to wait for a response anyway.
"She'll be among ANBU before the end of this year." he said, staring hard at Ibiki, "Make sure she is ready. I won't ask again."
Ibiki bit his tongue hard enough to taste blood. The urge to summon his torture chamber around the old man made his hands shake. He wanted to rip those bandages off, wrap them around Danzo's neck and pull until Konoha was freed from his clutches. The longer he looked, the more appealing the thought became. He was pretty sure Shikaku could easily take over the man's responsibilities and probably improve them too. Ibiki tucked that fantasy away for later.
He realized he still needed to answer. Danzo looked at him expectantly but clearly didn't want to hear anything other than obedience. Ibiki took a breath, deciding to just give a standard reply that didn't imply anything negative without sounding like an agreement, when a knock sounded on the door.
Their attention snapped to the entrance.
"Who is it?" Danzo called out, tension seeping into his posture. Ibiki clenched his jaw. His fist opened and reached for his pouch. Anyone who could just pass the guards like that and without giving away their chakra signature in the heart of Konoha was a threat- or a friend. He didn't dare to relax until the door opened and Shikaku's damned goatee appeared.
"Am I disturbing you?" Shikaku asked politely, after silently greeting both of them. He didn't wait for a response and pointed behind his shoulder with his thumb, "Hokage-sama is almost done drinking our supply of sake so we need to hurry up with the ceremony."
Ibiki could kiss the man.
"Tell her to wait," Danzo spoke, "we are not done yet."
Shikaku nodded apologetically, "I understand, but our safety protocol demands it. Festivities after dark are forbidden for everyone and it's already past noon."
They had about six hours before the sun would start to set. Ibiki glanced at Danzo. If it had been the previous Hokage (rest his soul), Danzo would not have even considered it. However, Lady Tsunade's reputation had spread across all borders and they really couldn't afford to rebuild the Hokage Tower so soon.
He nodded tightly, "I will be there shortly. You are dismissed."
Ibiki did not raise his eyebrows but he did shoot a short look at Shikaku, before walking out of the room. If he left a bit faster than etiquette required, well, no one would report him. Shikaku followed him a moment later.
Once they were sure to be out of earshot, Ibiki turned to his friend, "Thank you."
"Don't mention it," Shikaku shrugged, "Lady Tsunade really did ask me. Such a pain."
Ibiki chuckled, "How did you know where we were?"
Shikaku pointed at a 'Wet-Floor' sign near the door of the hallway they just exited, "These floors were cleaned yesterday in preparation, there is no way they would still be wet by now."
They arrived at the entrance where a group of shinobi waited with arms full of bouquets and presents. One of them, Shizune, approached the duo, "Lady Tsunade has already left to get ready, Master Jiraiya is with her. You came just in time, please change into your ceremonial costumes."
The men exchanged a look, "Ceremonial costume?"
Shizune nodded at Ibiki, "Yes. Since Lady Tsunade and her assistants have to wear them, she requested that every shinobi present had to wear them too."
And sure enough, Shikaku noticed with a sigh, everyone wore deep green yukata's with leaves embroidered on the sleeves. Every rank and specialization had their own additions, which meant that Shikaku had to wear the heavy, navy overcoat and even heavier decorated belt as well as the ostentatious hairpiece.
Ibiki snickered beside him as they trudged off to change. His outfit had an undershirt that covered his face, save for his eyes, and a short overcoat with a hood to make the whole thing more threatening.
They had received their outfits when they got the job, but no one had ever imagined wearing them.
As he pulled his shirt over his head, he wondered if the Genin would be wearing their outfits as well. Back in his day, they never even touched the box it came in. War left no room for fancy events. He had hope it would be different this year.
Main square, later that day~
Inoichi did his best not to look at Danzo too often, but his eyes kept getting drawn to the man. He looked as sour as Inoichi had ever seen him, though it would probably not be noticeable to others. He averted his eyes once more, deciding to grin at Shikaku again.
His friend stood besides the freshly inaugurated Tsunade, staring impassively at the crowd as he drowned in his clothes. He, like much of the spectators, looked like a character from a play. Inoichi looked around.
The Genin stood in groups, wearing their simple yukata's. The Chuunin had various duties to attend to and a few had rolled up the sleeves of their clothes to make their lives easier. The Jonin kept one hand in their sleeves, clutching a weapon of choice.
Festivities or not, Konoha had just fought off an invasion. Inoichi spotted a few civilians dressed in the typical fashion of the capital. They walked around leisurely, paying more attention to the stalls than the Hokage.
Smart, Inoichi thought as he looked back at Tsunade's strained smile, no village could be destroyed and still hold a celebration.
The inauguration went by in a flurry of colors and sounds. Drums echoed in the streets long after Tsunade had left. Young kids played with the trampled confetti and begged their older supervisors to light up some more fireworks. The scent of food began to fill the streets instead.
Inoichi cast one last glance at the group of Yamanaka's playing under the watchful eyes of a few trusted Chuunin, and left as well. He had to attend a few meetings before he could relax and get some precious sleep.
Thankfully, the current meeting was held in a restaurant. Inoichi greeted the tired members of the shinobi council and the Hokage herself. Jiraiya sat beside her, absently thumbing through a notebook in his hand.
"Man, I'm hungry." Shikaku grinned when the waiter brought out more plates with vegetables and thinly sliced beef.
Tsunade leaned back, "Good, because this needs to be finished."
As if on cue, more waiters appeared with dishes. Only when all available space on the table was filled, did they stop.
Inoichi smacked his lips, ignoring Hiashi Hyuuga's disapproving frown with practiced ease, and reached for his chopsticks. A hushed murmur fell over the table as the weary shinobi dug in. They hadn't been this relaxed in months.
"You really are being generous tonight, Hokage-sama." Tsume Inazuka said around a mouth full of shrimp.
Asuma looked up from his food, looking between the women. He had accepted the invitation with the full intention to go, stuff his face with as much food as he could handle, escape before the politics started and sleep for a day.
"Well," Tsunade replied, nursing a cup of sake with more restraint than Asuma had thought she was capable of, "I need all of you to like me, right?"
Tsume grinned, nodding enthusiastically, "I can tell you now Hokage-sama, we of the Inazuka respect the hell out of you."
Tsunade threw her head back and laughed. Asuma dropped the fishcake he had held between his chopsticks.
"I'm glad," Tsunade smiled, "I always enjoyed working with you lot back in the day."
Jiraiya leaned in, "How are the kids? Naruto's been telling me about his friends but it's hard to tell who he's talking about. Kiba is yours right?"
Tsume nodded, "Yep. Loud and dumb, that's my specialty."
"Ahw don't say that," Inoichi shook his head, "your heiress is doing pretty well, isn't she?"
"Oh Hana is going make a fine leader." Tsume sighed, "Kid has more patience than anyone I've seen in our clan. Don't know where she got it from to be honest."
Inochi grimaced, "She could teach Ino something about that. At least yours became a Chuunin"
Asuma viciously stabbed a mushroom through its core, startling an aging clan leader beside him.
Shikaku send him a pointed look and turned to Tsunade, "Speaking of the Genin, has Iruka told you about the camp yet?"
At her confused look, he continued, "The Genin have been a little distracted these past weeks. We've been busy, there were safety measurements and stuff, so Iruka thought it would be nice to gather them all for some activities."
Tsunade thought for a moment and shrugged, "I don't see any issues with that. At least they'll be out of our hair for a while. We have a busy schedule ahead."
Somewhere in the corner, Asuma piled more food onto his plate.
"I hoped we could discuss the safety measurements for this... camp?" Hiashi suddenly said, sounding as pleasant as a cyanide.
"Oh," the table turned to Asuma who hurriedly wiped his lips, "we're the safety measurements. The Jonin teachers are taking turns at the camp, along with some specialized Chuunin. Iruka is going to be there the whole time. And the camp is still within Konoha's borders, so it's completely safe."
Hiashi didn't seem impressed, "We can not be careful enough. Perhaps it would be better if we postpone this camp. We cannot afford-"
Tsunade interrupted him, "They will be called back if the situation calls for it. Right now we need to make sure all their noses are pointed in the same direction."
Her expression darkened, "I am not my teacher, and my past actions might suggest otherwise, but I too value loyalty above all else. Loyalty, teamwork and trust will give us the upper hand."
Inoichi silently lifted his cup and drank.
"Putting those kids together in an environment where they can only rely on each other will nurture those feelings." Jiraiya nodded, "And of course they will be training. I will personally go there too and put some sage wisdom in those tiny brains."
Hiashi's lips formed a thin line but he didn't speak up again.
Alley, after dinner~
Tsunade had not drank enough. The sake had been good and she had wanted to savor the taste for once and as a result hadn't drank fast enough. She turned the corner and sped up, not willing to get caught in any more conversation for the day.
Behind the restaurant was a narrow alley, with trashcans and stray cats decorating the space between two buildings. Uncaring for the annoyance of the ANBU trying to shadow her, she entered.
About halfway through she stopped, narrowing her gaze.
"Sneaking up on me never ends well, you know." Tsunade warned.
The shadow to her right moved and changed shape. The first thing to emerge was the shock of gray hair, followed by a dirty book lifted in greeting. Kakashi did not look like someone who had just been dismissed from the hospital. She glared at him.
"Wow, Hokage-sama. I didn't expect to find you here tonight. It's pretty chilly, right?" he said jovially.
"What do you want?"
With the same infuriating smile, Kakashi shrugged and waved in the general direction of the tower, "Just a minute of your time. I need to formally introduce myself to you, after all."
"Can I join?" Jiraiya's voice came from Tsunade. She groaned and rubbed her forehead. Both men looked at her expectantly and she the realization that she was in charge hit her like a ton of bricks. She outranked everyone in this village and surroundings. She could sit at the same table as all other Kage's and argue with them. She had power.
"Eh, Tsuna?" Jiraiya had walked around to face her, but now took steps back, "What is your face doing?"
Tsunade's grin turned into a scowl and she pushed past both men, "Shut up and follow me."
She led them to the tower and took a quick turn to her private office, dismissing the ANBU with a flick of her wrist. Her office had one large desk and leather chair. The curved walls were lined with shelves. Scrolls, statues and other trinkets filled the empty space. A collection of four previous Hokage's and now her own belongings.
Kakashi and Jiraiya waited silently while she turned the lights on and sat behind her desk, leaning back luxuriously. She could get used to this.
"Speak."
Jiraiya rolled his eyes and she resisted the urge to stick her tongue out.
"Did you know about Lord Danzo's interest in the Genin?" Kakashi asked without preamble.
Jiraiya stiffened.
Tsunade scoffed, "Which one? Uchiha? Ketsueki? Uzuma-"
"First two." Kakashi interrupted. His gray eye was hard as steel, "He's been pressuring Ibiki to hand Chi over to his jurisdiction. Even before that he had been contacting Chi to convince her. Recently he's also shown interest in Sasuke, but he hasn't approached him yet."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "Just convince her? If I know Danzo, he would never bother with conversation, she'd just wake up one day in his clutches."
"That does sound more like him." Jiraiya agreed.
Kakashi shrugged, "I'm not sure why he's being so open about it and why he hasn't made any other moves yet, but it could be that he's trying to make it look like Chi needs him."
"What about Ibiki then?" Jiraiya argued. Tsunade kept silent, frowning in thought.
Kakashi sighed, "There seem to be some... internal issues in Team 11."
"She has her friends though!" Jiraiya shook his head, "Naruto keeps talking about her. As long as they stick together, Danzo can't get in her head. And you were specifically assigned to be Sasuke's teacher. I don't think he could be any safer."
"I am just one man. Danzo has the entire ANBU at his disposition." Kakashi replied, "We can't risk the loss of either one of the students, or worse, both!"
Jiraiya folded his arms, hand brushing against the seal where the scrolls were hidden, "We need to have faith in them. No matter the outcome, they will have to make a choice."
Kakashi bit down on his lip. He was missing something, he had to be. Why else would two esteemed shinobi think it reasonable to just trust troubled Genin to go against the command of a very dangerous man? A man powerful enough to dine with the Hokage and not be inferior.
Jiraiya looked at Tsunade who had been quiet for a while now. "Tsunade, what are you thinking?"
"What does he think he's doing?" Tsunade snapped, startling both men, "If he even considers bringing that disgusting corps of child-soldiers back, I will-"
"With all due respect Hokage-sama, how do we know ROOT really deactivated?" Kakashi interrupted, "Do we take his word for it?"
A heavy silence fell. The three shinobi looked at each other. Kakashi's hands itched with the need to do something. To fight, to search. Anything.
"Sensei gave him too much power." Jiraiya said, surprising the other two. Jiraiya shook his head, "I hate to admit it, but he was too trusting. We can't afford to do the same... Tsunade?"
Automatically, Tsunade shook her head, "We can't take him out. Not now and not for only talking to a Genin."
She got up, "I don't think he'll be making any moves for now. Just like Jiraiya said, we need to make sure Chi will never think that she needs Danzo. Get her to the camp, make sure the Genin are all training and friends and just keep an eye out."
"What if it's too late by then?" Kakashi tried, unable to keep Sasuke's rage and Chi's empty eyes out of his mind, "We can't take the risk-"
"Danzo will be taken care of when the time comes." Tsunade said, tone final, "Each generation learns from its predecessor and we are no exceptions, Kakashi."
Sensing the dismissal, Kakashi straightened and nodded. In his effort to keep his chakra levels from spiking, he barely heard Tsunade bid them goodnight, but he managed to get his feet to the door and disappeared before Jiraiya could start a conversation.
Bar, very late at night~
Kurenai eyed Kakashi's growing collection of beer with worry. He'd been drinking in silence for a while now, not bothering with conversation or games. She nudged Asuma, who had been nursing the same glass of whiskey for about an hour now, and gestured at Kakashi,
"Go talk to him."
Asuma scrunched his nose, "Why?"
Kurenai rolled her eyes, "Because he looks like that, again. Stop sulking already. It's not like Shikamaru will never speak to you again."
At the mention of his student, Asuma looked more upset, "It's not just that..." he muttered but got up and dragged his feet to Kakashi.
Five minutes later and they were both drinking beers in silence. Kurenai heaved a sigh and decided to leave them. She listened to Anko's tale with half an ear, taking small sips of her cocktail.
There was a weariness to every shinobi in the bar. Most were content to just lounge and exchange small stories. Some used the warm room for naps or reading. Tomorrow they had to work again but for now, they could relax.
The door opened. Iruka stepped in, running a hand through his damp hair. Raindrops glittered on his shoulders as he neared the hearth. He held a map in his hand.
"Jonin teachers!" he called, smiling at a few others while he waited for them to gather. Kakashi and Asuma started their funeral march together. Ibiki peeled himself off the couch and joined the small group.
Iruka began to hand them each small zip files, glaring at the two rainclouds who arrived last.
"This is the schedule for the camp." he started, "It will last for only a week so the schedule is pretty packed. Gather your kids and meet me at T49, in two days, at 9 am. Read the file- I will quiz you, Kakashi!- and make sure the kids are prepared."
"Will they need to bring any camping supplies?" Kurenai asked and got whisked away in a detailed explanation.
Ibiki heaved a sigh and plopped down on his couch again, flipping through the file absently. The couch dipped and Kakashi stretched his lankly limps out beside him.
"T49 huh?" he said slowly. Ibiki nodded, surprised to see the man somewhat alive now.
"Man, it's been a while since I've been there." Kakashi continued, "Last time was when I was still in ANBU."
Ibiki frowned, closing his file, "ANBU doesn't go there."
Kakashi turned his head, "Not this ANBU, no."
"Well," Ibiki felt the gears turn in his head, "it's should be all empty now right?"
Kakashi shrugged, "Who knows? I haven't been there in a while but I was thinking that maybe we should check it out before we send our cute little Genin there."
The place had been cleared by a friendly ANBU with some spare time just a week before, but still. That ANBU had joined them about a year ago, still young and idealistic. They hadn't been involved with ROOT before. They couldn't have known.
"Smart," Ibiki replied, "I'll handle that. Think you can give us some pointers?"
Kakashi nodded. They sunk into silence, each lost in thought.
"I got some ANBU to guard them." Ibiki suddenly remembered, "Some trusted ones, they'll keep an eye out for anything even if we're not there."
"Mmm..."
"Go to bed, Kakashi."
Two days later, morning~
Team 11 arrived at the T&I office and waited in terse silence until Ibiki joined them with his coffee. The trio of girls greeted him and all sounds died again. Shinji studiously avoided looking directly at Chi, Ryuya stared nervously in the distance and Chi kept her expression blank. She couldn't hide her orange eyes however.
"So," Shinji began with a strained voice, "where exactly are we heading?"
Ibiki had to give it to her. Even after the fiasco that was the reunion, Shinji still hadn't lost her courage to speak up.
"Training ground 49." he told them, giving each of them a look, "It's pretty far so don't slow down."
Ryuya nodded. Her eyes flicked to Chi for a moment. A flash of some deep, complex emotion distorted her expression. Shinji mirrored her but she kept her eyes on Ibiki.
"Let's get going." Ibiki finally said and jumped to the roofs. All three followed immediately and landed without a sound. Like his personal squad of ANBU. Ibiki hated every second of it.
Once upon a time, there had been petty arguments and snickering behind his back. Shinji would pull a prank, Chi would pretend to not be involved and Ryuya would fail at lying to him. At least she had gotten better at that.
In the distance he could see Kurenai, followed by her Genin. He knew Asuma would deliver his team personally even though Shikamaru could do the same now. Kakashi's team had to be moving too, especially after the grilling Iruka had given the man the day before.
Team 7 departed from Naruto's apartment, as he was voted Most Likely to Forget to Meet. Naruto grumbled about it for a whole day but had no defense. And sure enough, his teammates had to drag him out of bed that morning. Then, the waiting game began.
Kakashi had told them to meet at 6, and appeared at 8.30 to keep up appearances. He arrived just after they had finished their cups of ramen. After the usual yelling, they sped over the rooftops to the mysterious training ground.
Sasuke glanced at Naruto, bit his tongue and looked away again. Sakura watched him repeat that for a few minutes before taking pity and speeding up to chat to Kakashi.
Sasuke looked again.
"Something on my face?" Naruto snapped impatiently.
As if it was a reflex, Sasuke sneered back, "Just your ugly nose."
"Oi-"
The argument came easy, as natural as waking up and as common as waiting for Kakashi. They ran as they argued. Months of practice had finally paid off as Naruto barely stumbled when he landed on a loose tile.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him, looking for any signs of injury. Naruto looked fine. He always did. His recovery time was second to none, bouncing back from exhausting fights after just one night. Wounds healed twice as fast, his energy never ran out and apparently he could unblock his chakra through sheer willpower, as he had done in his fight with Neji.
The only reason Sasuke knew about that was because Kiba wouldn't shut up about it and not because he had asked Sakura about it. Definitely.
But even he. Even Naruto would have been in trouble if he had come face to face with... him.
"What's with your face?" Naruto deftly avoided a chimney and frowned at him, "You look like a moldy prune."
"What did you say-?" Sasuke snatched a tile mid-jump and threw it at Naruto's head. It sailed past him but at least it made the boy jump closer to avoid getting hit.
He grinned, "What was that? You can't even aim!"
"Shut up Naruto," Sasuke fumed, "you are so annoying-"
He took a breath before he completely lost his courage. Naruto gave him a strange look.
Sasuke counted to ten in his head and decided to go for it, "What did you do when you were gone?"
The question caught him off guard. Naruto tripped and had to take an extra leap to avoid falling on the street. He jumped close again, uncharacteristically cautious.
"What do you mean?" he asked, "I went with the Pervy-Sage, we found the old lady and brought her back! Oh, and we fought Orochimaru, that was pretty intense."
Sasuke bit back a scathing retort. If he wanted answers, he would have to accept that his teammate was still an idiot.
"No, not that-" Sasuke hesitated, "I mean, did you meet anyone else?"
Naruto's face fell. He looked away, "You mean your bro- Itachi?"
Despite the years that had passed, Sasuke felt nauseous. Two very different parts of his life collided in that very moment, edges gnashing and splintering. Itachi's name sounded wrong from Naruto's mouth. Too heavy.
"Y-yeah..."
Naruto nodded, "I did."
And then, before Sasuke could lose his ability to speak, he added, "He's really strong, y'know. Good thing the Pervy-Sage was with me, he has this really gross jutsu. It like puts you inside a toad and it's super slimy but also really strong and Itachi had to use these weird black fire to escape with that shark-dude."
Sasuke blinked.
"But yeah Shinji's owl summon helped me too y'know. It- That guy is really sneaky, moving like he's some sort of ghost. He just knocked on the door. Knocked. My landlord doesn't even do that and I pay him! Anyway, he knocked and I opened the door and then the owl went mad and tried to carry me. I used this amazing Wind-jutsu-"
Naruto kept on talking until they reached the training ground. Ahead of them Sakura clenched her fist and sped up. She had so much work to do in order to keep up with those boys, but she accepted the challenge wholeheartedly. Between Sasuke and Naruto attacks, someone had to keep up the defense and make sure no one died.
It sure as hell wasn't going to be Kakashi 'No, I'm sure the nurses said I was fine to walk' Hatake. As the only sane person in her team, Sakura had to be the one to keep them alive.
Sakura's apprenticeship was going well. Her supervisors were proud of her work and she had managed to convince them to give her access to the medical library. It contained hundreds of books about theories and practicums and no one to read them. No one except Sakura.
When they finally arrived at the training ground, Kakashi noted with some pride that they were the last to arrive. The other Genin glared at his Genin and the Jonin glared at the real perpetrator. He smiled back and pulled out his book to read.
"Yo-"
Kakashi hid in a tree.
"Ah my rival." Guy sighed, "Always so flashy. So hip!"
Lee, who had his arms around Neji's neck and one good leg around his waist while his bandaged one awkwardly bungled along, shook his head, "No one is as cool as you, Guy-sensei!"
"Lee!"
"Guy-sensei!"
"Mercy." Tenten muttered.
"Death." Neji agreed.
He saw Hinata hide a smile and tried his best to keep his expression from freezing for another second. Cold and distant was his preferred look, but Hinata always looked anxious when she saw him. He faced his spandex-clad... associates and let his glare return in full force. At least his headache had subsided.
According to Tsunade he could now use his Byakugan again if, and only if,he started out slow and steady. No advanced techniques until she said so. As added insurance, she had told his entire team the same and now they were all watching him like a hawk.
Hinata smiled again and Neji tried to categorize the feeling as 'Good'.
Tenten rolled her eyes, "Please stop embarrassing us sensei, Lee."
She grabbed her backpack from where it rested against a rock and untied the folded wheelchair from the top. With absolutely no help from her team, she unfolded it, attached the wheels, tested it and wiped it clear of dust. Neji strutted over, dumped Lee in it and called it a day.
Tenten deserved so much better.
Naruto squinted at them, "Hey, why don't you use seals to carry all taht?"
"Seals?" Tenten tilted her head, "You mean like for my weapons?"
Naruto nodded, "Yeah, that's much easier!"
Tenten would have liked to know where Naruto had learned about sealing, but she noticed that neither Team 7 or Team 11 wore any backpacks or pouches. She frowned, "My seals are meant for weapons, they launch the contents upon release. And I got so many of them, I'd get confused and impale myself."
Also, she didn't know that much about Seals. All she learned was from teachers and the library. Her thoughts stuttered to a halt.
Uzumaki's were said to be masters in the art of Sealing.
Naruto was an Uzumaki.
Tenten smiled brightly at Naruto, who seemed rather surprised by that, and said, "Can you show me how you did it?"