THE SACRIFICE
by Poprice Fields
Disclaimer: None of the original characters in Naruto belongs to me. The small storyline and some OC are mine.
Summary: The Hidden Leaf Village hosts an Inter-School Summer Training Workshops. Amidst the new friendly atmosphere, the members of Anbu Team of Konoha were suspiciously missing. Now it's up to Naruto and co. to get to the bottom of things. But will they succeed before they, too, become part of the list of missing people?
Author's Note: It's been over two months since I've updated and I am sorry about it. I don't know if somebody will still read this story, but regardless, I'm posting a new chapter. Have a nice day!
Chapter Eleven: THE FAVOR
S.V. Marivella dangerously swerved along a huge wave. The weather had changed drastically upon the surprise invasion of the skilled pirates. From the tranquil, quiet night breeze earlier, it become more turbulent and colder, promising an unwanted storm for the night. Black clouds hovered above, covering the stars and the moon. The boom of thunders were heard now and then, as if warning the ship-boarders of the possible disaster they would be facing.
The pirates didn't mind the unpredictable swerving of the ship. They were used to these occurrences for having looted a hundred of ships before. They knew when to move and attack strategically, without slipping or unbalancing themselves. They were about eighty-- tanned, barefooted, grumpy, unclean, and pirate-looking. Most of them, the old ones, busied themselves with the ninjas of Konoha, while the remaining ones were ransacking the cruise with any valuables their hands could lay on. They possessed various arms: knives of different sizes, crossbows and arrows, bombs, and guns even.
The ninjas on the other hand relied on their makibishi, kunai, and most especially their abilities as ninjas to defend and attack these pirates. They tactically drove them out of the Social Hall to the dock so that people laying unconsciously inside would be safe and unhurt.
Anko and Iruka went to the captain's cabin. Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, and Kurenai fought their way to the pirate's rusty ship to retrieve the goods and persons they might have robbed and kidnapped, thinking that these pirates were responsible for the missing Anbu Team.
Sakura, Ino, Hinata, and Tenten fought whole-heartedly with the grown pirates, disgusted with the very idea of kidnapping the women to be their wife. They made sure every hit the gave was painful so that these pirates wouldn't ever again entertain such insulting ideas. Chouji turned into a huge human ball, and rolled himself into the path of the robbers. Since Shikamaru couldn't use his shadow trick without enough light source, he just stayed in the Social Halls (where there were lights on) and helped Chouji by transfixing the robbers onto the floor so that Chouji would hit them perfectly. Akamaru also helped in shooing the pirates from looting the cruise and transporting the goods into the rusty ship; he was instructed by his master Kiba to bite the asses of the robbers. Chewing on another power-food, Kiba fought with the swordsmen one by one. Shino also did the same, using his ability to command his insect friends. Rock Lee, Neji and Sasuke engaged in a physical combat with the pirates taking them all at the same time. For Sasuke, the more the merrier, since he still need to rescue his supposedly fiancée (from the old hag) and he could only do that if no one would heed his way through to her.
And as of our hero, namely Uzumaki Naruto, he was... well... feeling sick...
Not having boarded a cruise before, he struggled hard to stay balanced to be able to fight well with others. Though, he failed, sad to say. Sea sickness fell on him, and he was vomiting all over the dock, which somehow drove the pirates away from him. The railings, which he had been standing on earlier this evening, become his sole support from tumbling down on his own mess.
He merely looked at what the others were doing, cursing himself for not contributing anything. He served as a coach-- shouting at his team members whenever there was an attack from behind or something. Among the fast-moving bodies fighting in front of him, he search for Hinata-chan, feeling proud that she's doing well despite of uncontrollable swaying and swerving of the cruise ship.
Unlike me, Naruto thought glumly.
"NO!"
Naruto snapped upon hearing the crisp yell. He looked over to see who said that, and found Rekka holding firmly onto the railings and kicking the huge pirate who was carrying her. He wanted to help her. His one free hand rummaged through his pouch and got out three makibishi. He aimed at the hands of the pirate, and consequently, the pirate suddenly let go of Rekka's torso, grimacing in pain. The pirate lost his balance, and fell off the cruise to the sea.
Rekka's hands grasped firmly onto the cold railings, praying somebody would notice her and lend a hand.
But then, big drops of water started pouring, making everything twice as bad!
Rekka was losing her grip. In any second, she would also land onto the cold waters beneath her. She would have concentrated and put some chakra on her hands and feet to be able to climb up, but she couldn't. She was nervous since the thought of slipping her grasp, falling into the sea without knowing how to swim bugs her.
Naruto was walking towards Rekka with the help of the railings when the storm began. The raindrops blurred the surroundings, making it hard for him to tell whether Rekka was still there or not.
"Naruto! Concentrate and put a little of chakra on your feet!" Sakura shouted against the claps of thunder. She had cut her gown to her knees to be able to move easier. Seeing that someone was about to attack Naruto, she came to his rescue. Then, she disappeared in an instant to kick another butt.
So that's why they're moving with ease... I can't believe I didn't think of that...
He did what he was told, and found himself standing by himself without support. The cruise went thru another wave, yet Naruto wasn't slipping! He was free! And with his mischievous grin, he went into the middle of the action, completely forgetting about Rekka who was still hanging on her dear life.
Sasuke hadn't forgotten this fact, yet as much as he would like to help her, he was still busy with at least, fifteen more muscled men.
On the other hand, Hyuuga Neji was standing on the skeletons of the sails, fighting while looking out into the vast sea for any sign of Rekka's body. He found the none, anyhow, so he searched somewhere else-- the railings or the rusty ship beside the cruise. His eyes saw a pair of hands holding onto the railings, slowly slipping away. In a fraction of a second, he appeared before it and got hold of the arms. He began pulling it with all his might.
He was quite surprise (though his face didn't show it), however, upon taking a look down. The hands didn't belong to Rekka. The person he was pulling up was Lady Kristel, the girl sensei Asuma was escorting throughout the journey. He quickly pulled her up, and she came falling down on Neji onto the dock, to Neji's dismay. He straightened up himself, giving his hand to the girl for support.
"Tenten!" Neji called. "Put her back to the Social Halls." He directed the young girl to Tenten and disappeared in an instant. He went back to the sails to look for Rekka once again. Finally, he found her, still holding onto the steel bars and looking she's about to let go. He was about to rescue her, but then five opponents circled around him.
"SASUKE! I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SWIM! HELP ME! SOMEBODY HELP!"
Sasuke leaped forward, ready to go where Rekka was. He was sure she's in danger for she never had asked help from him, most especially, ever since she had showed up. Frantic and distressed, he gave quick flat blows to whoever was on his way. From the looks of it, he was unstoppable.
Then, it came out of nowhere.
"LOOK OUT!"
But the warning was a second too late. Sasuke hadn't had time to avoid it.
Damn! Sasuke cursed, red splats of blood spilling out of his shoulder. He was too worried about Rekka and hadn't notice someone was about to kill him from behind. He put a hand onto the wound, feeling the degree of damage.
The culprit for stabbing Sasuke's shoulder was standing in front of him, a devilish grin plastered on his thin lips. He was a ghostly-looking man, probably in his forties, holding the curved knife that chucked Sasuke's shoulder. He toyed with the knife for a couple of seconds, watching in amusement Sasuke's expression.
Rekka watched Sasuke's wound, wanting to climb up more than anything else. She felt it was all her fault. If she hadn't distracted him, he would be still whole. She glanced to his direction and was taken aback upon seeing Sasuke's very grim expression.
She was too shocked that her grip loosened, letting herself fall at last.
She wasn't nervous anymore. The thought of drowning was forgotten. All she have in mind was Sasuke. She hadn't seen him look so... so serious... so black... so bitter... so menacing... so different... so stone-hearted...
SPLASH!
Neji abandoned his post upon hearing the seemingly loud splashing sound. He went over to the railings, and sure enough, Rekka wasn't there anymore. Without thinking twice, he dove into the icy cold water...
Rekka's body slowly descended down deeper into the sea. Her eyelids fluttered open, revealing a dark surrounding around her. Where was she? Where's Sasuke? She got to help Sasuke... She got to tend his wounds... She got to tell him to smile sometimes... She got to tell him he's an idiot for wanting revenge... She got to be there for him...
She gulped another mouthful of water. Her head was spinning. Her eyelids seemed to be heavy and she couldn't continue to open them anymore. She gave up, and settled to go with the flow of the waves.
The battle between the ninjas and pirates had come to an end, yet it was quite hard to tell who won.
The pirates retreated when they sensed they couldn't rob anything more from the cruise. Some of their men were killed and there's no use to avenge for their deaths. They got enough valuables, and that's why they were in the cruise in the first place anyway. If some of their comrades die during the proceedings of the robbery, then their sorry but they wouldn't do anything stupid (like fight some more) that would jeopardize their true intensions. All they could do was to collect their bodies, if ever there was a chance.
The ninjas, on the other hand, were exhausted. Since the pirates put up a good fight, their chakra diminished significantly. They have scratches, bruises, and cuts, but still, they managed to keep the boarders of the cruise safe and unhurt, which was their basic mission. True, they hadn't had time to retrieve all the looted things (for there were so many pirates), but which was more important-- earthly goods or lives of people?
The falling of the rain continued until dawn, though it was not as erratic as the storm last night. The unconscious guests had come to their senses, shocked to see the state of things around them. The lovely Social Halls were now a total mess because of the robbery and the fights. Everyone panicked, especially the women, upon realizing what just happened. The ninjas helped and assisted them to their rooms, telling them everything was under control, now that the pirates were gone.
Anko and Asuma led a 'medical team' which will tend to the needs of those guests with headaches or anything health-related problems. Chouji, Tenten, Hinata, Kinobi, and Motoochi were tasked to help in this field. Kurenai and Gai, together with Sakura, Ino, and Shikamaru, started to prepare meals for everyone. While the rest was to clean up the mess (blood) all around.
However, Sasuke didn't want to. He had fought very hard last night to be able to rescue Rekka, and not wipe the floor clean! But still, sensei-Kakashi had held him before he could get off the ship. Kakashi's eyes were clear and grave, and Sasuke got the message: more lives would be spared from death if he, Sasuke, was there... It was there mission. He settled with taking on every pirate along his path, knocking them unconscious as quickly as possible. If all pirates would be dead, he's free to go and rescue his fiancée.
But it didn't happen.
Saying that Neji got Rekka, sensei-Gai gave Sasuke a mop.
Sasuke's grip on the wooden handle of the mop tightened. The two hadn't showed up and he's getting impatient (???) with this situation. If he had dove first into the waters, he would not be stuck here waiting for her… he would not be hearing Kiba and Naruto brag with all their hearts how many pirates they took last night… he would not be mopping the floors… and of course, he wouldn't owe that Hyuuga Neji something…
Damn! Why doesn't she know how to swim? Why does that Hyuuga have to rescue her? I should rescue her! Not him! Damn it! Sasuke thought grimly, wiping a portion of the floor rigorously.
"Sasuke?"
"WHAT?" Sasuke snapped at Naruto, his face looking angry.
"Geez, Sasuke relax," Naruto said coolly. "Look," he continued, pointing at the floor where Sasuke was mopping, "you're not cleaning at all. You're making it worse, actually…"
Sasuke glared at him before going back to his work.
Naruto thought it was kind of weird for Sasuke to explode like that since he's usually quiet and keeps his temper cool. "What's the matter Sasuke?" he asked, mopping beside Sasuke. "Didn't get enough sleep last night so you're grumpy during the day?"
Sasuke ignored him.
"Or maybe, you think this mopping-the-floor-mission just doesn't suit you," he continued to say. He looked at Sasuke, who seemed not to be listening to any word he said. But still, his babble went on. "Don't frown much. Rekka said to me once, you shoul--… Wait a minute! I GET IT! You're worried about her, aren't you?"
For a fraction of a second, Sasuke stood still. He wasn't sure if worried was the right term to describe what he was feeling.
"Hmm. I guess, you should be. I mean, she's still you're fiancée…"
Sasuke wanted to tell Naruto to shut up and mind his own business.
"Hey! Aren't you going to find her?" Naruto inquired, stopping whatever he was doing. "Come on, Sasuke! Give me that! (He snatched Sasuke's mop.) Now, go and find Rekka-chan. I'll take your post from here on." He made a clone which looked like Sasuke.
Sasuke was taken aback. He didn't know what to say.
Naruto noticed this so he said, "Hey, don't just stand there! You should find her before Neji can make a move toward her, know what I mean? I saw Neji's eyeing her last night, so I guess he fancies your fiancée, man. And as much as I would hate to admit, between the two of the most arrogant guys, I'd prefer you over Neji to be with Rekka. I mean, you're insensitive and all, but I bet Neji's more insensitive! That jerk I will not forget the time he hurt Hinata-chan!" Naruto heaved some air and calmed himself. He added, "So you can thank me, Sasuke, afterwa--… Sasuke?"
But Sasuke was gone from his sight.
Naruto saw a small boat paddling away from the cruise ship very fast. "HEY SASUKE! YOU OWE ME BIG TIME!" he yelled, a huge grin was seen on his face.
"Who are you shouting at?" Kakashi asked, appearing instantly beside Naruto with his favorite read in his hand.
Naruto sealed his lips and tried to distract his sensei so that he would not look at the sea.
But sensei-Kakashi turned and faced the vast sea. "Is that Sasuke?" he asked.
Naruto sweatdropped.
"Good," Kakashi uttered, opening his comic book once again.
"What?! Good?!" Naruto asked, scandalized. "You mean, it was perfectly alright for him to go find Rekka?"
"Yeah."
"But you— I mean, sensei-Gai told him…"
"Don't tell him," Kakashi said, referring to Gai. "What he doesn't know won't hurt, right?" With that, he disappeared in a smoke.
The next day, the S.V. Marivella cruise ship reached the pier of Rojam Island, the main and largest island of The Hundred Islands. Minus Sasuke, Neji, and Rekka, the pack of teenaged ninjas assembled on the dock and waited for their teachers next instructions. The teachers were discussing something with Lady Kristel. Finally, they had made a decision.
"We've arranged with Lady Kristel that all of you will stay at their hot spring resort, together with Iruka and Ebisu…"
Naruto made gagging noises for he knew that Ebisu would have a field day in a hot spring resort!
"Why?" Sakura asked the teachers. "Aren't we supposed to do the mission straight away?"
"That's all part of the mission," Anko said simply.
"But the Anbu--?"
"We'll take care of it in the mean time," Kakashi said. And before anyone could interject, Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai, Anko, and Gai disappeared in front of them.
TBC
Author's Note: Thank you for reading! Special thanks to the following people who reviewed the previous chapter which I have updated ages ago-- nightmares of death, bea, Cookie6, Mike Pan, Wormkaizer, kai013, Astly-Hinata-chan, Migicians of the Yami, ePuiChi, and Isis (advance happy bday btw). I have been super busy with school stuff. Anyway, I'm already working on "The Sacrifice" that will happen. And I have been dropping some kind of hints in here and in the previous chapters of what caused the Anbu Team of Konoha to be missing. The sensei-Kakashi had assumed that, and well, he and the other teachers will confirm that. The next chapter will be entitled: "The Date" so it's going to be romantic. Well, I am wondering if you can guess who will be on a date in the next chapter. And while you're at it, I want to ask why you think they will be the persons to date. It will be fun to know your predictions...