Disclaimer: I don't own naruto or any of its characters as they are the property of Masashi Kishimoto.
The author of the cover image is indy-riquez from DeviantArt. You can check the link for the original image in my profile.
Chapter 20: The Calm Before The Storm
''Okay team, we'll be resting here for the night'' Declared Kakashi as he and his team contemplated a small village while they stood at the Torii gate at its entrance.
The village was in the middle of the forest on the border of Grass Country. It looked like its main attraction was being a resting place for travelers going to Kusagakure as a large portion of the buildings were rather large hotels that towered above the surrounding trees. Also, this place was well-known for their thermal waters, and while it was not as renowned for them as the Land of Hot Water was, it was still their major selling point for tourism.
''We have been traveling at full speed almost non-stop for a day and a half. Tenchi Bridge is only half a day away, so we have some spare time'' Kakashi explained to the four teenagers and the ANBU woman. ''This is a good chance to relax and rest. We want to be in our best shape for tomorrow, we don't know what might happen when we meet the spy''
''Sounds like a good idea to me'' Said Yugao serenely, but on the inside, she was jumping with joy at the chance of getting a moment of relaxation that was so rare for her nowadays.
''I'm all up for it. I could use a nice hot bath right now'' Said Sakura. After their long travel, going for a dip in thermal waters seemed like the perfect reward.
''It beats sleeping on the ground, so why not?'' Commented Naruto with his hands behind his head in a casual manner.
''Well, the idea is not unappealing'' Said Kurotsuchi. It was true, it had been a while since she got to enjoy a bath in a hot spring and she rather missed the feeling.
''If our captain thinks this is best, I can only agree with him'' Replied Sai with a smile as always.
''So we all agree. All right then, follow me'' Exclaimed the copy ninja as the group started walking towards the nearest hotel that was the closest to the village entry. They all took the opportunity to glance around the village to get a feel for the place. Around the hotel were what appeared to be restaurants, souvenir stores, and snack stands. This place was obviously heavily focused on catering to tourists. And even though it was nighttime already, one could still see several people walking the streets buying from the nearby shops.
It only took them a few minutes to register on the hotel, and after being assigned their rooms, they proceeded to go further into the large building to look for them and unpack. The rooms were among the many others that were in a wooden hall. All the doors of the rooms were sliding Shoji doors, and after a while, they all found both of their rooms at the end of the corridor, one for the men and one for the women, and were conveniently just across the hall from one another.
''Here are our rooms. Naruto, Sai, and I, will be staying on this one'' Said Kakashi as he pointed at the Shoji door behind him with his thumb. ''You girls will use the other one. While we are split up, you two listen to Yugao-San'' Finished the copy ninja as he looked at Sakura and Kurotsuchi.
''Of course, Kakashi-Sensei'' ''Right'' Responded both girls in unison.
''I guess all that's left to do is unpack. So we'll see you girls later'' Said Kakashi as he went into the men's room, with Sai following silently, and Naruto waved at the girls as he left.
''See you later, Kurotsuchi, Sakura-Chan!'' Said the blond as he followed Kakashi inside.
''Bye, Naruto'' Responded Sakura amicably.
''Until tomorrow, I suppose'' Responded Kurotsuchi with a wave of her own.
''Rest well, boys'' Said Yugao as she too started going into her own room, with Sakura and Kurotsuchi right behind her.
Once the girls were alone in their room, they each took off their sandals before they went to wander around the place to have a good look at it. The hotel room was very traditional, aside from the sliding door, it didn't have beds which meant that they would have to sleep in futons. there was a small table in the middle of the floor that was so short that one would have to sit down on the floor to use it. There was a wooden closet at the end of the room with small drawers on one side, and beside it was a small lamp on the floor. Overall, the room was rather barren but it was comfy enough.
''We'll rest for a little bit, after that we can go and enjoy the hot springs'' Declared Yugao as she took off her weapons pouch and sat down to go through her supplies.
''Fine by me'' Said Kurotsuchi. She knew that Yugao was going to make her go one way or another since the ANBU had to keep an eye on the Iwa prodigy they couldn't split up, and if Yugao wanted to go to the hot springs she would have to take Kurotsuchi too. Not that the tomboy could complain, she could also use a hot bath to unwind.
''I for one, think is pretty nice to have more girls to talk to'' Said Sakura. She was used to being the only girl when she went on missions with her team. It was a welcome change to have more women around in the pinkette's opinion. After that, she directed her attention to the Iwa Kunoichi. Now that she thought about it, she had barely spoken to the girl at all since she met her. She could use this occasion to find more about the spunky girl, who knows, they might get along well. ''What do you think, Kurotsuchi-San?''
''Uhh?'' Said Kurotsuchi dumbly, as she closed a drawer that she had been inspecting to look at Sakura.
''Don't you think is nice to be able to have some girl's time among ourselves? After all, you are always with Naruto, I can only imagine how tiring that must be'' Finished Sakura with a playful giggle. She deduced that, since Naruto was the only common relationship that they had, he may be a good topic to break the ice.
''If you say so. Personally, I don't mind being with him at all'' Said Kurotsuchi. She didn't care much for any 'girl's time' as Sakura put it. Besides, she had always related more to boys than girls, with her being a tomboy and all.
''Well, he is a nice guy. So I guess that is not unusual that you two are such good friends'' Said Sakura, hoping that Kurotsuchi didn't take her last comment the wrong way, it had only been a joke. ''But you do have to admit that his silliness can be irritating from time to time''
Kurotsuchi couldn't bring herself to deny that statement. She had had her fair share of disputes with the blond in the past, so she knew all too well that Naruto could get on anyone's nerves sometimes. ''He is not that bad. Why? Does he bother you that much or something?'' Inquired Kurotsuchi.
''No, of course not! He might anger me on occasion but we're cool'' Said Sakura with a wave of her hand. To be fair, Naruto hadn't even pestered that much lately, not even to ask her on dates, which was a weird but welcome change for the medic. ''At least he isn't as annoying now. You should have met him when he was younger, he used to be far more childish and loud. He has matured quite a bit in comparison''
''I can imagine'' Said Kurotsuchi with a small smirk. Even if she liked Naruto and got along with him, she still found him to be a bit immature; charming in his own weird way, but still immature. She could only wonder how he had been when he was a child. ''Then it's a good thing that I met him now, or I might not have gotten along with him enough to be his friend''
''Yeah, it is probably for the best'' Agreed Sakura with a smile. ''It wasn't easy being on a team with him. Sasuke-Kun used to get so irritated by him and would always be so moody. I'm surprised they never ended up killing each other'' Said the pinkette good-naturedly before she got a somber look on her eyes. Reminiscing about simpler times and when their team was whole was painful.
''Really? I thought that Naruto and the Uchiha would have gotten along better with how adamant Naruto is in bringing him back'' Remarked Kurotsuchi with a raised eyebrow.
''Well, they had this sort of friendly rivalry between them. They might have been at each other's throats most of the time, but they were still close friends, we were all close'' Said Sakura with a sad tone of voice. ''Our team was not perfect, but we eventually became like a family. If it hadn't been for Sasuke's brother and Orochimaru's interference he would have never left us. Naruto hasn't forgiven himself for failing the mission to bring him back, even though he did everything he could''
''So, he went on a mission to retrieve him and didn't manage to get to the Uchiha fast enough?'' Asked Kurotsuchi.
''They did catch up to Sasuke and the Oto-nin with him'' Said Yugao from the other side of the room, which caught the attention of the other two girls. ''I heard that Naruto himself fought Sasuke and the rest of his team fought Orochimaru's men. Naruto was the only one to lose his battle and the Uchiha got away. But even though no one died that day they came pretty close to, if it hadn't been for Suna's support they all might have perished'' Said Yugao coldly. The ANBU didn't have a high opinion of the last Uchiha. For a Shinobi there were very few things more important than loyalty to your village, to your comrades. Sasuke left the village, that fact alone would have been enough to label him a missing-nin, but on top of that he almost got a bunch of his friends killed. The purple-haired woman was a firm believer of Kakashi's usual phrase: 'Those who don't follow the rules are trash, but those who abandon their friends are worse than trash', and Sasuke had done both.
It seemed that Kurotsuchi shared Yugao's sentiment. ''What?! That is why we are doing this mission, to get info to save that kind of guy?!'' Exclaimed Kurotsuchi in astonishment and rage. She had already known that the Uchiha deserted, and she could understand the need of Naruto and the rest of Team Seven to get their comrade back and reason with him, but she didn't know that he had attempted to murder his fellow Konoha ninja. Yes, she might have attempted to kill Naruto in the past, but she hadn't been his friend yet, she had no reason to care at the time, but this Sasuke prick was already Naruto's friend and he knew how desperate his team was to get him back, and he still tried to kill the blond?! And not only that but Team Seven still wanted to bring his sorry ass back to Konoha? If Kurotsuchi was in their place she would be looking for the Uchiha all right, not to save him but to rip him a new asshole for being such a traitorous little shit.
''Don't be so quick to judge Sasuke-Kun. He had a pretty tough life, and Orochimaru's machinations along with his brother's memory had a bad influence on him'' Said Sakura.
''Oh poor him, that totally makes up for betraying your trust'' Said Kurotsuchi with a deadpan look.
''You don't even know him! So don't talk about Sasuke-Kun like that! You have no right!'' Said Sakura, getting a bit agitated.
''I don't need to know him to know that he is an asshole'' Said Kurotsuchi coldly. ''Everyone has problems, that doesn't give him a right to treat his comrades like dirt''
Yugao saw Sakura clench her fists as her glare towards the tomboy intensified, so the ANBU chose that moment to intervene lest things got out of hand. ''Okay, that's it for now, you two'' Said the purple-haired woman as she approached the two girls and put a hand on the shoulder of each one. ''I think now would be a good time to go and enjoy the hot springs. So grab some towels and let's get going''
Both teenagers stayed glaring at each other for a moment without saying a word, but after a few seconds they nodded and went their separate ways to look for the towels.
Yugao sighed, glad that their argument didn't escalate more than that. It looked like they would not be friends anytime soon. How she hated working with kids. Yugao hoped that at least Kakashi wasn't having any trouble with the two boys...
Meanwhile, said copy ninja stared with an impassive face as his lone visible eye went back and forth between Naruto and Sai as the blond glared at the pale boy and Sai just glanced back at Naruto with an expressionless smile.
''You have been looking at me for a while now. May I ask why?'' Asked Sai. ''And would you please stop it? It's uncomfortable''
''I can't stand you being here!'' Said Naruto. ''I still haven't got you back for attacking me and bothering Kurotsuchi, so don't think I forgot about that!''
''That's it? That's the only reason why you are angry with me?'' Said Sai as he did a tilting motion with his head.
''Wha-? Of course! What other reason would I need?!'' Said Naruto, raising a fist in a threatening manner.
''I'm sorry if I wronged you before, but I needed to see if the girl was being kept under proper control, and I needed to see if her caretaker was good enough to stop her if she goes rogue'' Explained Said calmly.
''She is fine! She is a good person and would never betray us! So don't stick your nose when you don't need to!'' Said Naruto.
''I disagree. You can't trust an enemy. Also, I'm disappointed by the security around her. You aren't strong enough to stop her, and even with the ANBU guarding her, she seems skilled enough to do good damage before they could put her down. She shouldn't be allowed to roam free'' Said Sai.
Naruto grinded his teeth as he glared daggers at the pale boy. ''First of all, I didn't use all my tricks when we fought, so you have nothing to go around calling me weak! And we can have another go at it whenever you want so I can kick your ass! And second, Kurotsuchi is my friend, one of the best I have and I trust her with my life. I know her better than you, so don't tell me she is dangerous!''
''Making friends with an enemy is a very foolish thing to do but I guess that I should expect something like that from you'' Said Sai, which made Naruto narrow his eyes at him. ''That's just asking for her to stab you in the back when she sees an opportunity''
''What would you know about friends?! With that attitude of yours probably no one likes you!'' Said Naruto as he pointed a finger at Sai. ''So I don't care if you don't like me or Kurotsuchi, I know I can trust my friends!''
Sai squinted his eyes and kept smiling at Naruto, and waited a few seconds more before answering back. ''You have it wrong. I don't have any malice towards you or the girl for that matter. I don't feel anything at all actually. I can't feel happiness, sadness, anger, disgust, shame, nothing. So no, I don't understand concepts like friendship beyond their definition, but we are Shinobi, we don't need any of that. We are tools to complete our mission, nothing more, nothing less''
Naruto was momentarily stunned by Sai's admission, but that didn't last long and he went back to glaring at the pale boy. ''Bullshit. You can't possibly be without any emotion'' Said the blond. What Sai said was very similar to what Zabuza had told him long ago, and even the renowned swordsman had been unable to completely kill his feelings in the end. If someone as cold and ruthless as Zabuza had been unable to relinquish his emotions, there was no way that someone like Sai could. Hearing the stoic boy proclaim that he couldn't feel anything sounded ridiculous to Naruto, it just made Sai seem like a tryhard in his opinion.
''It doesn't matter what you think, it's the truth. I have endured rigorous training regimens to get rid of my emotions completely'' Informed Sai.
''Keep telling yourself that. You know what I think?'' Asked Naruto, waiting to see if Sai would add anything when he didn't, the blond continued. ''I think that you are trying to convince yourself that you don't have feelings as much as you want to convince others''
''Those are baseless assumptions. From all my peers I'm one of the best'' Said Sai.
''From your 'peers' you say? Then there are others like you?'' Inquired the Jinchuuriki.
Now that got Sai to widen his eyes. He had made a mistake, he wasn't supposed to be talking about ROOT. How could he had been so careless just because of Naruto's prodding? Did the blond's words actually affect him?
''He is a member of ROOT'' Informed Kakashi with crossed arms.
Naruto looked at his teacher with a puzzled expression while Sai watched him in shock at having his secret revealed.
''I'm sorry Sai, but if you are going to be Naruto's teammate he deserves to know'' Said Kakashi.
''But what is 'ROOT' Kakashi-Sensei?'' Asked the blond.
The copy ninja hummed softly as he thought of a good way to explain. ''Simply put, they are a branch of our ANBU. They are technically still ANBU but they are different in a number of ways. The members of ROOT are trained to try and suppress their emotions and taught that only the mission given to them are important above all else, even more so than their personal beliefs, loyalties, or even their life. Also, they are not under the direct command of the Hokage like regular ANBU, but under Danzo's orders'' Said Kakashi.
''That's sound terrible! Why does Tsunade-Baachan allow something like that to exist?! They should be disbanded!'' Exclaimed Naruto as Sai looked at both of them with an unreadable face.
''Officially, they are disbanded, but they still operate underground. As I said before, their loyalties aren't with the Hokage, they won't disappear just like that even if the Hokage says so'' Kakashi pointed out. The Hokage did have the means to completely eradicate the organization, but doing so might risk a skirmish between Konoha Shinobi, as that action would cause a divide between both factions of the ANBU. Add that to the fact that ROOT was a necessarily evil; there were a lot of less than savory things that had to be done regularly for the village prosperity, and ROOT took care of those assignments. It wasn't an ideal situation but that was how the world worked.
Naruto stared horrified at the copy ninja's explanation before he redirected his gaze to Sai. ''How can you be okay with being part of such a repulsive organization?! They treat you like trash as if you didn't matter!'' Naruto couldn't comprehend how someone would be fine in working under someone that saw you as less than human.
''It might seem awful and inhuman to you, but what we do is make us into proper Shinobi. Most ninjas have forgotten that we are meant to be weapons for our people's benefit, in ROOT we just strive to continue to uphold the true meaning of a Shinobi'' Explained Sai, still as calm as ever.
Naruto was about to give another rebuttal when Kakashi interrupted him.
''Sai, I get what you say. I used to be the same way'' Said the copy ninja softly. ''I was once a member of ANBU, and I was one of it's best members, mainly because I did my best to kill my emotions and become the image of the perfect Shinobi I had in my mind. Just like ROOT ninja, I only thought of the mission and the mission only. The only times I would stray from my objectives is if I had to help my comrades, but aside from that I did only what was best for the completion of the assignment, and always with a cold and stoic disposition''
''I fail to see what the problem is if you always completed your missions with flying colors'' Said Sai.
''The problem is that I was losing myself'' Said Kakashi eerily. ''I was starting to become detached to everything and everyone around me. A Shinobi that feels strongly that the cause he is fighting for is worth all the struggle, is a Shinobi that performs at the best of his ability, even more so than an emotionless killing machine. Now I'm grateful that the Sandaime made me get out of the ANBU, or I might have ended up worse.''
''Emotions are the cause of every conflict in history. Emotions breed hatred, which in turn breeds war. Is better to be a machine than incite war'' Replied Sai stubbornly.
Naruto had had enough of hearing Sai's ridiculous logic and decided to really give him a piece of his mind. ''Emotions are what shape people in the first place!''
Naruto's outburst actually startled Sai and made him stagger a little bit.
''Yes, without emotion there would be no wars but there would be nothing else either!'' Naruto continued. ''What we feel for other people is was makes them worth protecting in the first place! Enjoying the company of family and friends is the most important thing in the world, those bonds are what makes life worth living! And even when we feel bad, like when we are sad, or angry or whatever, that is still fine too, because that is how you know you are alive, and as long as you live you can always find something to enjoy in life. If we didn't feel anything we might as well be dead''
Sai was speechless, he didn't know how to respond to what Naruto had said. The blond did have a point, if people didn't care about other people, then what sense did it make to have ninja to protect their friends and family? A good example was Kirigakure when they started making academy students kill their classmates in an attempt to make them kill their emotions, which resulted in an entire generation of sociopathic killers. Also, because most of the graduates were turned into psychos, a lot of them defected to become missing-nin since, without emotion, they also lacked loyalty even to their village. Even today, Kirigakure still struggled to remove their stigma as the 'Bloody Mist Village' despite having abandoned their previous practices. But Sai wanted to think that the situation in Kiri was different, the first thing that ROOT cemented in their members was a firm loyalty to their leader: Danzo-Sama, so their similarities with Kiri didn't mean that ROOT's teachings were flawed, did it?
''You know, I think that you lie'' Said Naruto, which caused Sai's distracted gaze to focus him once more. ''I think that you do feel something already: You are afraid. You know that deep inside you still have emotions, but you are too afraid to let them out because you don't want to think that you and your master have been wrong all along. You are too afraid of your own feelings that you would rather bury them than come face to face with your own humanity, and that's sad. If you weren't such an asshole I would pity you'' Finished Naruto before getting up and leaving the room with the intent of crashing in the hot springs to relieve some tension.
Kakashi and Sai were left alone as the pale boy pondered on what Naruto had said. Was he afraid? Did he really yearn to know the feelings that he had relinquished all those years ago? And if so, what was he going to do about it?
''I don't know about you, but I think that a nice hot bath would do us some good. What do you say?'' Said Kakashi with an eye-smile, breaking the silence in the room.
Sai directed his attention to the Sharingan user before he nodded reluctantly. And with that, both of them also exited the room.
Kurotsuchi and Sakura sat submerged to the neck in hot thermal waters, making a point to ignore each other after their recent argument. The pond they were was rather spacious, one could easily fit about two dozen people comfortably, but since it was pretty late in the night, only Kurotsuchi and Sakura were ocupying it as they waited for Yugao. Even though the place was outdoors the pond was surrounded by tall walls, no doubt to protect the guests from unwanted prying eyes. The men's pond was just next to the women's, but their areas were divided by a tall and thick wall constructed with bamboo poles.
''Hey girls, how's the water?'' Said Yugao as she approached the two teenagers while only wearing a towel to conceal her body.
''It feels great'' Said Sakura, a bit more drily than intended as she was still miffed about her discussion with the tomboy.
''It does seem that way'' Said Yugao as she tested the temperature by sticking her toe in the water from the edge of the pond. Once she determined that the temperature was to her liking, she took off her towel and proceeded to go down the steps made from stone as she joined the other two girls.
Sakura stared enviously at Yugao as she entered the pond. The medic liked to think that she had come a long way from her Genin days, not only regarding her skill but also her attractiveness as a woman, and seeing the older woman's perfect figure made her feel very self-conscious of her own, particularly her bust size.
Even Kurotsuchi, who normally didn't care about such things, couldn't help but stare at Yugao. Who knew that the ANBU had such a good shapely figure underneath her uniform. The Iwa Kunoichi had never considered herself to be very feminine, even in body, as her frame was very boyish. So she could not stop herself from comparing her body to the purple-haired woman.
''Ahh, that's the stuff! This is just what I needed'' Said Yugao with content as she sat at the side of the two younger girls before she eyed them in wonder when she noticed the weird stares sent her way. ''What is it? Do I have something on my face?''
''It's nothing'' Replied both girls at the same time.
Yugao wasn't entirely convinced by their answer, but she just shrugged as she decided to not bother. Instead, she leaned back until her back was against the stone and she sighed to relax.
With both teenage girls doing their best to avoid talking to each other, along with their sour mood, the three of them just sat there in the water in silence, but to Yugao that was just fine, it meant that she could enjoy herself in tranquility.
Meanwhile, at the other side of the bamboo wall, Kakashi, Naruto, and Sai were also enjoying a bath.
''You guys better take this chance to loosen your muscles. Too much tension before a mission can be harmful to your bodies, and you don't want that on the battlefield'' Said Kakashi as he sat in the water with both arms resting on the edge of the pond in a relaxed manner, and even while taking a bath he still found ways to cover the lower half of his face, he did so by wrapping a towel around it, which in Naruto's opinion looked completely ridiculous.
''I know, I know, but is hard to not be anxious when we are so close to getting information about Sasuke'' Said Naruto from the other side of the pond.
''Don't get too ahead of yourself, Naruto. Even though our mission is to capture the spy, we still have to determine if there is one in the first place'' Said Kakashi sagely. ''Remember that this lead was given to us by Sasori. We don't know if he was being truthful or he was leading us into a trap. We will approach the place cautiously, and once we determine that he didn't set us up, then we can worry about getting info on Sasuke''
''That makes sense'' Said Naruto, a bit somberly. with so much excitement coursing through him, he forgot to consider that Sasori might have lied to them, and if that was the case it would put them at square one once again.
''Don't lose hope, we can't do anything about it right now, trap or not. So we just have to have faith for the time being'' Reassured Kakashi before turning to their new member and ask what he thought about it. ''Isn't that right, Sai?''
Said boy was currently looking at the distance with a lost look on his face, and for a moment he didn't react, but after realizing that someone had talked to him he widened his eyes and looked at the two other people with him as if he had just been snapped out of some trance. ''Yes, of course, Kakashi-Senpai'' Said the boy with a bit of uncertainty as if he wasn't sure of the question he had just answered to before he went back to looking at nothing in particular.
Kakashi and Naruto glanced at each other to share looks of confusion at Sai's strange behavior. Ever since their talk a few minutes ago, the ROOT member had been very quiet, even more than usual, and seemed to be lost in thought constantly. They both wondered what was up with Sai all of a sudden. Regardless, they were thankful that he at least wasn't being a dick like he normally did due to his terrible social skills.
''All right, guys I forgot some things in our room. I'll be back shortly'' Said Kakashi as he stood up. He figured that his beloved Icha Icha book would help him relish in his bath even more if what he wanted was to relax and enjoy himself. Also, he forgot another towel as he usually used two: one for covering his face and another for covering his privates, and he forgot the one for his privates.
''You gotta be kidding me! Really, Kakashi-Sensei?!'' Thought Naruto as he saw Kakashi walk into the hotel again with the towel wrapped around his head than on his waist. He simply couldn't believe that the man cared more about keeping his face hidden than cover his family jewels for the world to see. ''Kakashi-Sensei has issues'' Thankfully Sai was still distracted to notice the shameful display of their captain, so that was something at least.
With Kakashi gone, Naruto submerged himself to his nose and starting bubbling water with his mouth just below the surface in boredom. It wasn't like he didn't enjoy the bath or anything, but he wasn't the type to stay still without nothing to do, and now that his Sensei left him, there went his only source of conversation, considering that Sai didn't appear to be in a talkative mood, and even if he had been, Naruto wouldn't have talked to him anyway. He perked up and surfaced when a mischievous idea came to him and he turned around to look at the bamboo wall behind him. He remembered hearing the girls voice not long ago, which meant that they had to be taking a bath at the same time that they were. Just a quick and sneaky peek from above the wall separating them would be enough to give him a good view of them. He blushed at the thought of seeing his teammates in all their naked glory. He had liked Sakura since forever, and Yugao was good looking too, and Kurotsuchi...
He gulped at the thought of the image of his friend taking a bath as her damp hair clung to her body, and her skin glittered in the light due to water covering her smooth skin. He blushed furiously at the mental picture he created of her, and he wondered why his reaction was only directed at her. If anything he should be anticipating seeing Sakura who he had been pursuing for years. He shook his head as he debated if he should go trough with his idea or not. He glanced at Sai once more to see if he was paying any attention at all, and just as expected, Sai still had the same lost look as before, so Naruto felt confident that his pale comrade wouldn't notice anything, and even if he did, he was too ignorant to socially acceptable behaviour that the might not even think anything of it.
Naruto sighed, already having made up his mind. A quick peek wouldn't hurt, would it? He would climb the bamboo wall silently, watch for a couple of seconds, and come back down as if nothing ever happened, easy peasy.
He stood up, wrapped a towel around his waist, and slowly made his way towards the wall, and with all the care in the world, he grabbed firmly the rows of ropes holding together the strong wooden poles and he started to climb. As he got higher and higher he made sure to only let go of one hand until he was sure that the rest of his limbs were properly holding on. He kept the same pace for a couple of minutes until he was almost at the top. ''Almost there!'' However, just before he placed his hand over the last segment of the wall, he stopped to think again on what he was about to do. ''Wait, what am I doing?!'' Thought the blond in disgust with himself when he considered that this wasn't just a simple prank or anything like that, he was effectively invading the privacy of his fellow teammates and friends, it was a betrayal of their trust. He was always berating Jiraiya for spying on women, and here he was about to do the same thing. Imagining the look of anger, disappointment, and betrayal on Kurotsuchi's face if she ever found out what he had done was more than enough to make him reconsider his actions.
So, having changed completely his mind, the blond started climbing down the wall once again. but as he started doing so, he felt the base of the bamboo poles starting to wave back and forth slowly. Naruto froze in silent panic, it looked like the wall wasn't as sturdy as he originally thought and was about to fall. In fact, the only thing keeping it in place was Naruto himself balancing the damn thing from the top. ''Oh crap, I should just have let go and dropped to the ground when I had the chance!'' Yes, falling from that height would have made some noise, but the women at the other side might not have thought too much of it, but now if he let go of the wall it would just come crashing down and the girls would realize what he had been trying to do. The only thing that Naruto wished was that he could hold on long enough until Kurotsuchi and the rest finished their bath...
Kurotsuchi turned to look as the medic on their team when Sakura gave a yawn as she stretched her arms above her head, a clear signal that she was tired, not surprising since it was late already.
''I think this is enough for me'' Said the pinkette as she stood up and wrapped her towel around her body. ''I'm going to bed now. See you tomorrow if I don't notice you when you come back to our room'' Added Sakura with a wave of her hand.
''Have a good night, Sakura'' Said Yugao politely while Kurotsuchi just settled for waving back as they both looked on as Sakura went back into the building.
Once the medic was gone, Yugao turned to look at Kurotsuchi. ''I had hoped that you two would get along better''
The tomboy shrugged off the ANBU's concern. ''Is not my fault that pinky is so oversensitive when it comes to the Uchiha. Naruto never mentioned how much of a dick the guy was, so it came to me as a surprise when I heard about the things he did''
''I don't like the guy either, but you also have to remember that Naruto and Sakura feel a strong need to save him, even if it has to be from himself too'' Yugao reminded the tomboy. ''What I'm trying to say is that just try to me more understanding of them, or at the very least be more sensitive when you mention Sasuke around them''
''I know that'' Replied Kurotsuchi. ''Still, I can't understand how they can like such a guy''
''Just try to put yourself in their place. What would you do if you lost a close friend to you, Naruto for example, and you knew that you could do something to get him back. Wouldn't you at least try?'' Asked Yugao, using her knowledge abut the girl's increasing affections for the blond in her favor.
''Th-That's different!'' Said Kurotsuchi with a blush. ''I know that he would not put me in the same position that the Uchiha put him in, nor would I do the same to him. I know that Naruto can get on my nerves, but unlike the Uchiha, I know he has integrity''
It was at that moment that the tall bamboo wall beside them came crashing down and both Kunoichi were quick to stood up and get themselves in a battle position should they be under attack, but to their surprise they just found a familiar blond figure squirming in pain, face down on the remains of the bamboo poles.
When they realized what was going on, both girls grabbed their respective towels in haste to cover their bodies from the chest to their knees before they turned to glare coldly at Naruto who was just starting to get up.
''Naruto!'' both women growled at the boy with murderous intent clear in their eyes.
Naruto barely had time to rub his aching head before he attempted to calm down the livid females. ''W-Wait! I can explain, I swear!'' But his pleas fell on deaf ears for the girls still looked just as angry.
''I'm going to kick his ass'' Kurotsuchi informed Yugao, first making sure that she would not get in trouble with the ANBU for assaulting the Jinchuuriki.
''Please do. Hard'' Responded Yugao icily.
Naruto gulped loudly as he turned around in an effort to make a run for the hotel entrance on his side of the pond, but his sprint was cut short when he felt a chunk of quicklime connect with his leg and he stumbled and fell to the floor as Kurotsuchi approached him to give him a beating.
Naruto's pained yells resonated around the pond area as Yugao watched with content the punishment that befell upon the blond while Sai just occasionally spared a glance at them before he returned to his own thoughts.
By the time that Kakashi came back, he was greeted with a huge mass of congealed quicklime sitting in the middle of the pond with the bruised face of Naruto sticking out from it and he was apparently out cold, while Sai just continued to sit calmly at his side.
The copy ninja turned to look with a deadpan expression at the bamboo wall and saw it being supported by another mass of quicklime that kept it standing as it acted like some sort of makeshift glue. Kakashi didn't need to be a genius to deduce what had happened here.
The Sharingan user let out a tired sigh as he turned to the newest member of the team. ''Sai, please help Naruto get out of there'' Said Kakashi as he entered the water once again to read his Icha Icha book in peace.
Sai nodded obediently and he proceeded lo leave and look for a Kunai or any other tool that helped him carve Naruto out of the cement-like substance.
''With Naruto around, even a simple break before a mission is eventful'' Thought Kakashi as he flipped a page of his book.
Author's note:
I want to apologize for the length of this chapter which is shorter than usual. Again. But to make up for it, I'll be posting the next chapter much sooner! (I have already written a good portion of it)
The chapter might seem kinda like filler, but I didn't want to jump straight into the action just yet as I needed to start setting up some events that are going to happen later and I needed to establish some things first so when the events happen they don't seem like they came out of nowhere, so I needed to develop the characters just a little bit more.
Just one random thought that I feel I need to share with you guys is that I seem to have a lot of trouble writing Sakura which is the reason why I took so long to update. I swear to god that everytime I experince any amount of writer's block is because of Sakura related scenes. I think that I have a lot of trouble writing her because of the way her character is potrayed in the show: She swings back and forth from a capable and strong Kunoichi and fighter to a helpless/useless damsel in distress that has to depend on the rest of her team to do anything, and this extends to the way she acts too, not just in her abilities. Thanks to the inconsistency in her canon behaviour I always end up stressing if I'm portraying her right or not, even when she doesn't have that big of a scene.
I know that it seems insignificant that I worry so much about getting a single character right despite not having that much of an impact in the story, but that's because the one thing that I find the most important in fanfcition is characterization. I consider that the number one reason people read fanfiction is because they want to see more of the characters they love, If you butcher their personality then they are not the same character anymore, which defeats the purpose of reading a fic in the first place, that's the main reason I dislike bashing actually. The only instance when I find acceptable to be a little OC is when you are writing a comedy scene, and even then, one has to be careful to not go overboard with the OCness. That's why I always try my very best to keep the characters true to their selves, I don't claim that I do it perfectly, but I always give it my all.
Well damn, this author's note was a lot longer than I intended, so I won't prolong it anymore.
I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! And as always, please review or send me a PM if you want.
