Chapter 2
The strained press of air constrained by latex. The bubbling of giggles.
"Na-ru-to!"
The blond in question jumped, his laughter put in its place.
The orange-clad teen froze with the handle of the balloon pump pulled back.
A scowl marred Sakura's features.
"What are you doing goofing around? This needed to be done yesterday!"
Naruto's shoulders drooped.
"S-sorry, Sakura."
The teen pushed the handle down, the orange balloon at the end of the device swelling in size.
Sakura sighed and sat down on a nearby box.
"This whole thing is so… ugh."
"But Sakura-chan, aren't you excited for the party tonight?"
Naruto again paused in his efforts to gauge his friend's reaction.
Another scowl.
"No way. It's not even a party."
Naruto's whisker-marked cheeks flushed, his eyes focused elsewhere.
"So, Sakura-chan, what's your costume for tonight?"
The girl growled, spurring the blond to immediately resume his balloon-inflating task.
The sounds of the squeaking pump forcing air into balloons were all that accompanied Sakura's thoughts for a moment. But her ears soon piqued to an approaching chatter.
"— are what make it like you're pretending to be one of them."
A deep male voice, vaguely familiar.
"So if you wear one, they won't steal your soul or whatever, because they think you're undead too."
A grunt of displeasure.
"I know the story."
Sakura sat up, eyes widened. That voice was unmistakable.
"As I've explained, tonight, the real undead will rise."
A sigh, feminine but clearly disgruntled.
"And as we've explained, there's no such thing as the dead coming back to life."
A pause.
"At least, not on such a large scale."
Sakura stood up and faced the warehouse's entrance. Naruto stopped adjusting a balloon on the pump's nozzle.
Three figures headed their way — a redhead with the kanji for "love" on his forehead, a woman with four blond pigtails, and a hooded man whose face was styled with purple paint. Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro — the Sunagakure Siblings.
"Gaara!"
A grin shone on Naruto's face as he spotted his friend. Sakura inwardly sighed that he had again paused in his simple task.
"Naruto, it's been a while."
The trio stopped a few feet away from him. Sakura observed they were dressed more warmly than usual — a rare display of seasonal appropriate attire from the three.
"Hey, Gaara, are you going to the party tonight?"
The redhead's brow furrowed.
"Party?"
"It's not an actual party," Sakura explained. "It's actually a Halloween festival the city is hosting tonight."
"That's right!" Naruto chimed. "And there'll be cool stuff happening all over the place."
"Ah, that's right," Kankuro mused. "We never go to these, so it slipped my mind."
Temari frowned.
"Slipped your mind? How? There are decorations and flyers up all over the city."
Gaara appeared thoughtful.
"Naruto, have you heard the rumors?"
The blond and his companion regarded him with confused intrigue. After exchanging glances with each other, Naruto faced Gaara again.
"Rumors?"
The redhead's face was serious.
"That tonight, the dead will rise."
Faces were blank as they took in their companion's statement.
Sakura clapped a hand to her lips, stifling a laugh. Naruto, not so much.
"Yeah! That's what Halloween's for! Don't tell me you don't have a costume, Gaara!"
The blond's laughter relaxed the others, but Gaara remained aloof.
"This rumor isn't about Halloween traditions. It's a plan someone has for the city's deceased."
Naruto's laughter dissipated and confusion was again evident.
"Gaara, who did you hear this rumor from?" Sakura asked.
"The Kage Communications Network."
Eyes widened, mouths agape.
This time, Temari's brow furrowed.
"You mean, the other kage know about this?" She questioned.
Gaara solemnly nodded.
His companions were at a loss.
"So…"
Kankuro broke the silence.
"The kage really believe that there's someone with the power to revive the dead out here? And that they're going to strike tonight?"
Gaara closed his eyes.
"I can't vouch for their beliefs, but we are treating this intel seriously. There is a high possibility that tonight, the dead will rise."
A stunned hush again overtook the room, until it was broken by familiar, joyful laughter.
A mixture of disdain and confusion directed its way toward Naruto.
"That's great! I never guessed they'd get Gaara in on the action!"
Gaara narrowed his eyes.
"What?"
Naruto grinned.
"You're so serious that no one would second-guess you! It's the perfect prank, 'tebayo!"
Sakura's eyes widened and she looked between the two.
"Naruto, I'm not sure this is a prank…"
"It is not. I'm being serious. You need to be careful tonight. Who knows what —"
"I've gotta go tell Lee!"
With another peal of laughter, Naruto darted past the trio and out of the warehouse, leaving a shocked Sakura alone with the siblings.
"Naruto! Where the hell do you think you're going?"
Rage contorting her features, Sakura dashed after him.
The siblings stared out the entrance.
Gaara placed a hand to his forehead.
"This does not bode well for tonight."
A pendulum of clanging. One, two, one, two.
"Two-hundred and five. Impressive."
"I'm not even close to breaking a sweat."
A loud clang resounded through the humid air as the man placed the barbell on its rack. He sat up and turned to face the masked man at his right.
"But I doubt you're here to test my endurance. It's been some time, hasn't it?"
A knowing smile showcased the man's sharpened teeth.
"Correct, Kisame. I'm here because I need help with a bit of party planning."
The ladder swayed, sun glinting off its metal body, teen clinging to its rungs and urging it back toward the tan wall it so urgently sought to escape.
With a clank, the object rested against the wall once more. The man atop it relaxed his white-knuckled grip and exhaled.
"Shikamaru! It's crooked!"
"What the hell do you expect? Did you miss the part where I just nearly died?" The exasperated teen rebutted.
The blond on the ground below him put her hands on her hips and pouted.
"Don't be so melodramatic. Now straighten it!"
Shikamaru scowled, cursing as he turned toward the wall and lifted a dangling purple streamer to his left.
"Little more! Little more… there!"
The teen sighed as he taped the streamer in place. He glanced across the window, where in the other corner hung the freshly-taped, newly readjusted end of the streamer, which now hung in stylish arches.
He carefully climbed down the ladder and approached Ino.
"Good work!"
He frowned.
"Too much work."
As the blond glared at him, the man hefting pumpkins before the storefront laughed.
"Any work is too much for you, Shikamaru."
"And you two wouldn't have had to do all this if you hadn't knocked over the display in the first place," Ino assessed to a Shikamaru who refused to meet her gaze.
"What a drag…"
"Choji, put the rest of the pumpkins over there, please," Ino directed. "Those last ones are just pie pumpkins, so they can just accentuate the others."
"Sure thing," Choji agreed. "Mmm, pie. These pumpkins are good for making pie?"
The larger teen eyed the small pumpkins hungrily.
Ino huffed in amusement.
"Alright, alright. Since you did so well, if we have any pumpkins left after tonight, I'll make you a pie. But just one!" She stipulated.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes as his best friend began to whine over his one-pie fate. Then movement to his right caught his attention.
"Excuse me, do you happen to know if there's a hotel around here?"
Ino's eyes widened as she and Choji also noticed the new presence. She quickly made her way next to Shikamaru.
"Oh! It's right down the road and to the right," Ino replied, pointing down the roadway.
"I see," A woman replied. "Thank you."
The friends watched as a trio of three in dark cloaks followed Ino's directions. When they at last turned the corner to the right, the three let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Wow, did you see those eyes?" Ino asked.
Shikamaru's eyes were narrowed.
"Those weren't ordinary."
Choji laughed.
"They're really ready for the party tonight."
As Ino laughed with him, Shikamaru remained silent.
I don't think that was a costume…
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