A/N: Arrgh...I wanted this to be a (somewhat) serious fanfic! I suppose that to make that happen I need to get a more serious attitude myself kicks self
Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to Icemint! You were there since the very first day I put up this fanfic not knowing what people would think of it. Thanks man! You were my motivation to write when I felt unsinpired -

CHAPTER 13: Great Expectations

Floundering, misdirected anger.

WHAT IS THIS! She fumed silently. This is another world! This is a totally different dimension! This is an adventure! This is the challenge of the unknown! This is a step into the great beyond! This is--

...BORING.

"Well, well, now that we're all back, I'll leave you guys to celebrate your happy little reunion then," Kakashi said in a falsely sweet voice. "I need to go pay the Hokage-sama a visit." With that, the Jounin instructor had simply disappeared with a puff of smoke, leaving Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto to deal with the extraneous item he brought back.

Then, almost immediately after Kakashi jumped ship, Sasuke had ditched the group, with Sakura chasing after him.

Leaving her with only Naruto.

And a pile of once-again dirty clothes that had been instantly transported onto the wonderfully dirty floor of a cave that hadn't been inhabited, much less cleaned, for what-deity-knows-how-long.

At least they were dry, but that didn't do anything to improve her mood.

The cave had been too stuffy, so she and Naruto had hauled her clothes outside and were now dividing it into two bundles to carry down together. He had nicely asked her to go to his apartment and stay a bit, after she had painstakingly described (in meticulous detail) the various torturous things she would do to him, should he take off and desert her as well.

Since he'd already tasted her cooking previously, she had a nagging suspicion that Naruto had probably intended her to stay with him anyway. He even offered to help her carry her things down, but she told him to go entertain himself while she seperated her clothes into two piles.

No way she was going to let Naruto touch her underwear.

Kicking a loose, medium-sized rock down the hill, she took perverse pleasure in hearing it crash down the steep slope. She hoped it would hit someone on the head.

Stupid Kakashi. Ditcher. Mono-eyed perverted straw-headed hay-brained deserter. And stupid Sasuke. Mr. I-had-a-bad-childhood-so-I-get-to-be-a-rude-stubborn-prick-to-everyone. Mr. I-am-too-cool-to-talk-so-I-will-just-grunt-or-snort-on-occasion.

She finished seperating the piles and began bundling them up, shifting her target of anger to Sakura.

Miss Closet-schitzo-fanatical-Sasuke-groupie.

Miss My-hair-will-glow-in-the-dark.

She paused, considering. That one wasn't entirely fair, she decided grudgingly. She'd let her predjudice of pink get in the way.

Alright, then. Miss I-am-hopelessly-and-stupidly-in-love-with-Mr-I-will-snort-and-grunt-on-occasion.

Done with bundling, she called the blonde boy back and together, they started down the mountain.

"...and that pretty much concludes it," Kakashi finished.

The Hokage nodded. "The girl. She came here with you as well, you said?"

"Yes, that's right." affirmed Kakashi.

"Very well. Bring her here and have her stay at the special guest lodgings. I am calling together a meeting tomorrow morning and I would like her to attend...there are many questions that need answers, and many things that must be discussed."

"Alright. Do you mean the rooms reserved for special emissaries and messengers from the other Ninja countries, sir?"

The Hokage took a deep puff from his pipe and exhaled, slowly. Billowing whips of smoke swirled around in the air, temporarily hiding his face from the Jounin. "No. The other rooms."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow slightly, but showed no other indication of surprise. "You want her to be kept under supervision?"

"Yes, Kakashi. See that it is done."

Kakashi nodded. "I understand." With a quick bow, he quickly left the room, keeping his doubts to himself.

Wide-eyed, the girl stared at the "room" she was to be staying in. It had a living room, a bedroom, a bathroom, and a kitchen. The rooms were all moderately-sized, but very sophisticately decorated; ink and watercolor paintings graced the walls, and a giant fan with elegant calligraphy surrounding the Konoha village's Leaf symbol hung on the wall directly opposite her. An exquisite bamboo curtain seperated the living room from the kitchen, and a queen-sized bed heaped with an insane amount of pillows, blankets, cushions, and quilts awaited her in the bedroom. Not a speck of dust was to be seen anywhere.

Desipte the fact that overall, the room was not that big, she couldn't imagine herself occupying all this space.

Kakashi grinned at her expression. "Well? Is it to your liking?"

The girl had to gulp before she got her voice back. "You know...I can just stay with Naruto...I like him well enough and I actually like cooking for someone else...this...really isn't neccessary..." She and Naruto had barely gotten back to the boy's apartment and started a game of cards, when Kakashi suddenly reappeared out of nowhere and told her to come with him.

The Jounin waved off her protests. "This is your room. You'll be staying here for the time being as a special guest of Konoha. Just remember that the Hokage wants you at the meeting tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM." with that, he left and shut the door behind him.

She just nodded dumbly to no one in particular, and stood there rooted in spot for a few more moments before she decided to explore the room a bit more.

First, she walked into the kitchen. On opening the various drawers and cabinets, she discovered that it was stocked full of every kind of cultery item, equipment, food and other ingredients imaginable for nearly any kind of cuisine. The pantry and the refrigerator was just as fully loaded, with six different kinds of ice cream in the freezer.

Stunned, she walked to the bedroom and sat down on the bed. An investigation of the closet revealed some robes and sleepwear and even some clothing that she guessed was the current fashion of girls her age in the village; while there weren't a lot of these, they all happened to be close or near to her size so she deemed that it couldn't be coincidence. What was more, all the clothes that she had hauled to Naruto's place had been transported here, freshly laundered and folded into neat little piles into the drawers of the closet.

What a day, She thought. Everywhere she looked, she found another surprise. A vase of flowers on the table. A stationary set within the desk drawers. A yukata hanging inside the bathroom. But she didn't see the insidious shadows lurking outside the windows. She didn't hear the soft footsteps padding back and forth outside the door, or notice the faint traces of chakra that held together the containment jutsu around the room.

A/N: I've nothing against any of the Naruto characters (with the exception of Orochimaru, Baki, and Kabuto) and I like them all quite much. In fact, the more I like them, the more I like to make fun of them. XDDDD Yes I'm weird like that.
Yukata: Looks like a kimono, really kind of a casual kimono. It's a Japanese summer robe commonly worn after baths.