Chapter Six: Of Waking Moments
Tsunade stared into the fire while Kakashi attempted to cook a small meal. Sasuke wasn't sure he would actually try it. Kakashi claimed that whatever was in the pan was fish, but Sasuke thought that fish shouldn't be brown and spiky. He wrinkled his nose in distaste and turned away, glaring at nothing in particular. Tsunade tore her eyes away from the hypnotizing depths of the dancing flames to cast an amused, yet somewhat disgusted look at Kakashi cooking.
"Er, Kakashi?" she said. He looked up at her.
"What exactly are you cooking? And what an earth are you trying to do with it?"
Kakashi visible eye narrowed defensively.
"I am cooking fish! I've said it a million times! And I am frying it!" Tsunade laughed, despite herself.
"No offense, Kakashi, but if that's edible then I resign as Hokage." She looked over at Sasuke, who was once again wrinkling his nose at the contents of the pan.
"Hey, Sasuke, take a bite of that and see if it's edible."
"Yeah right. We haven't trusted Kakashi-sensei's cooking in years, ever since we all got food poisoning. There is no way in hell that I am putting that in my mouth." Tsunade chuckled to herself.
"I see we don't have a gourmet chef, exactly" Tsunade snickered to herself then turned to Sakura.
"What do you think of Kakashi's wonderful cooking my dear?" she said, stressing the word 'wonderful' in a way that made Kakashi shoot her a glare. Sakura blushed.
"Er, well. It's not that his cooking is bad per-se, it, er, just needs, uh, a bit of, um, work," She finished lamely. Tsunade snickered again and glanced back at Kakashi.
"I rest my case," she stated flatly. "I won't touch it, and you're mad if you do."
It was obvious by the sudden dent in Kakashi's mask that he had done the very appropriate and adult thing to do. He had stuck out his tongue. Tsunade rolled her eyes.
"Very mature, Kakashi, really, sometimes I think you should relax and stop acting so serious," Tsunade said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Just get rid of the food already. Let the animals have it. Well, the ones who are brave enough to try it, that is." Kakashi knew he had been beaten, and, shoulders slumped in mock defeat, he disposed of the "food".
Tsunade pointed to an ANBU member and said, "Hey, I know you can cook. Would you mind?"
"Not at all," a female voice said from behind the mask. She silently stood and headed off into the surrounding trees, coming back as few minutes later with four large rabbits in her grasp. She set to work skinning them. Sakura looked on sadly. The ANBU member flicked a glance at her.
"Don't look so sad. It's better than eating whatever Copy Ninja over there was cooking. You like bunny rabbits?"
"I have one at home," she replied. Sasuke snorted. He should have guessed that she would have a girlie sort of pet like a rabbit.
"Yes, well, I have five," the ANBU said. Suddenly, there was a rustling in the trees, and all the ANBU were instantly on their feet. A man appeared. He had long white hair with red tattoos on his face.
"Hey! Aren't you the one Naruto calls Ero-Sennin?" Sakura asked.
Jiraiya twitched.
Kakashi snorted. "Is that so, Ero-Sennin?" he said, stressing the name.
Jiraiya twitched again.
The ANBU relaxed and sat down again.
"You had to give us a scare, didn't you?" one of them asked. Jiraiya, the little shit, just smirked slightly and sat down near the fire.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he murmured, "I was just coming to check up on things"
"Liar," Tsunade said, "What are you really here for?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow mockingly.
"Am I not allowed to be concerned about my student? Lord knows Kakashi doesn't give a damn about them most of the time." Kakashi looked furious.
"It was a joke, Kakashi." Jiraiya said, "You need to lighten up. No, I am really just here because I don't have anything better to do."
Tsunade smirked.
"They threw you out of the ladies bath again, didn't they?"
Jiraiya went beet red.
"You really are an Ero-Sennin. It seems Naruto has the measure of you."
"I told him not to call me that," Jiraiya muttered angrily. The adults all laughed. Another ANBU voiced their opinion.
"Jiraiya, if it wasn't him, someone else would have. I mean, we don't even have to wonder where you are. If we wait long enough by the bathhouse, you'll show up! I'm surprised you don't introduce yourself as Ero-Sennin to other people."
Jiraiya dropped is glowing face into his hands. "What did I do to deserve this torture?" he asked to no one in particular. The ANBU all slid each other looks under their masks.
"Do you really want that question answered?" the woman asked. Jiraiya glared at her. Then his eyes fell on Naruto.
"Tsunade, did you use the jutsu I think you used?"
The Hokage merely nodded. "I was going to wake him up soon, though. He's been out for a while."
Sasuke listened intently to their conversation in hopes of learning more.
"Tsunade, this jutsu is a double edged sword! Do you know how sore he'll be for the next week? How tired you'll be?" Tsunade nodded again.
"I know, but it was for the best. You can wake him now if you want." The Sennin inclined his head, still muttering about how stupid women were, and knelt down next to the boy on the ground. He preformed a few seals, there was another soundless explosion that knocked Sakura sideways onto her Sensei, and Naruto stirred.
His huge blue eyes opened and blearily looked around, than he sat bolt upright. Pain distorted his features and he groaned.
"What the hell..." he muttered, rubbing his head. Tsunade gracefully knelt beside him, brushing a stray lock of hair off his face as she went. He moved away from her.
"Don't touch me," he said, stiffening. A frown creased Tsunade lips.
"Naruto, what's wrong?" she inquired, "Does it hurt too badly? I'm sorry."
"It's not that."
"Then what?"
"Nothing," Tsunade sat back on her heels. She looked confused.
"Naruto, I mean, are you all right? Did something happen?" she glanced around at the others, namely, Sakura and Sasuke, who were listening intently. There was silence for a few moments, and then Naruto answered.
"Yeah, something happened. A lot of things, actually. But there's something I want to know right now." Tsunade looked around again. "Later, Naruto, I think you should rest-"
"NO! I want an answer. I want one right now."
"Naruto! Not here. We'll talk later." Jiraiya spoke this time, with force. Naruto glared at him, his eyes flashing red.
"No. I want to know what really happened fifteen years ago. I want to hear it from you." Jiraiya growled deep in his throat and picked Naruto up by his collar, dragging him away from the group.
"What's the matter with you?" he hissed into Naruto ear. The blonde winced. His muscles were on fire!
"You're all liars!" he manages to spit out through his pain.
"You lied about everything!" Naruto, panting hard, hung limply in his jacket, which was still being help up by Jiraiya. Then he added an afterthought.
"Why am I so fucking sore?" he mumbled heatedly. Jiraiya smacked him over the head, and none too softly either.
"Language," he said warningly, "It's because of the jutsu Tsunade used on you. You'll be sore for while, but no lasting effects. Now what is up with you? Why do you seem to hate Tsunade all of a sudden?"
"Answer me!" Naruto snarled, "Tell me why the fox attacked the Leaf! Then tell me why you all lied to everyone!" Jiraiya sighed and set Naruto back down.
"Naruto, it's incredibly complicated."
"Like hell it is! How complicated could it have been to have told me the truth, huh? Now I have to find out like this."
"Naruto, I'm sorry if the truth is upsetting, but it was a law. We weren't allowed to tell you."
"It's not the truth that bothers me. It's the fact that you lied to me all these years. I mean, I thought I could trust you to always be honest with me. One of the few people I thought I could trust, but I guess I was wrong." Tears gathered in the corner of Naruto eyes and he stared at the ground. Jiraiya sat down.
"Naruto, I'm sorry. But I just can't tell you. It's against the law. You never should have even known about the fox. This just complicates things." He rubbed his eyes lightly with the tips of his fingers before pinching the bridge of his nose.
"When did things get so messed up?" he mumbled. Naruto sat down next to him, his temper cooled down.
"Ero-Sennin, did you honestly think that I would never find out? Already three people have been after the fox's powers. I would eventually have found out."
Jiraiya was quiet for a moment.
"I knew the time would come when you would eventually discover the spirit of the fox that dwells inside you. There are too many people, organizations, and entire nations seeking that kind of power. There will be prices on you. You would be worth much on the underground trade if you were ever caught." {1}
"I...just...I..."
"Feel betrayed," Jiraiya finished for him.
"Understandable. I would too," Naruto felt a but coming on, "but, what would you do in Yondaime's situation? He didn't even want to have to use a baby, much less you. But, in order for the fox spirit to be contained, there needed to be a living vessel for it. Had he sealed it within himself, the moment he died, it would have broken free." Naruto sighed.
"Perhaps that would have been better."
{1} Think of it as a Shinobi Black Market, if you will, where forbidden scrolls and techniques are sold, among other illegal items, and perhaps, even illegal slave trading. YAY! Short, I know, but YOU try finding time to write chapters living my life! Lol. For the last like 6 weekends I have had something I needed to do or a place that I needed to go with my family (fun not). I am SO SORRY it took this long, but it's been really really REALLY hectic for me lately. sigh I didn't like the chapter that much, either, now that I think about it.
Tsunade stared into the fire while Kakashi attempted to cook a small meal. Sasuke wasn't sure he would actually try it. Kakashi claimed that whatever was in the pan was fish, but Sasuke thought that fish shouldn't be brown and spiky. He wrinkled his nose in distaste and turned away, glaring at nothing in particular. Tsunade tore her eyes away from the hypnotizing depths of the dancing flames to cast an amused, yet somewhat disgusted look at Kakashi cooking.
"Er, Kakashi?" she said. He looked up at her.
"What exactly are you cooking? And what an earth are you trying to do with it?"
Kakashi visible eye narrowed defensively.
"I am cooking fish! I've said it a million times! And I am frying it!" Tsunade laughed, despite herself.
"No offense, Kakashi, but if that's edible then I resign as Hokage." She looked over at Sasuke, who was once again wrinkling his nose at the contents of the pan.
"Hey, Sasuke, take a bite of that and see if it's edible."
"Yeah right. We haven't trusted Kakashi-sensei's cooking in years, ever since we all got food poisoning. There is no way in hell that I am putting that in my mouth." Tsunade chuckled to herself.
"I see we don't have a gourmet chef, exactly" Tsunade snickered to herself then turned to Sakura.
"What do you think of Kakashi's wonderful cooking my dear?" she said, stressing the word 'wonderful' in a way that made Kakashi shoot her a glare. Sakura blushed.
"Er, well. It's not that his cooking is bad per-se, it, er, just needs, uh, a bit of, um, work," She finished lamely. Tsunade snickered again and glanced back at Kakashi.
"I rest my case," she stated flatly. "I won't touch it, and you're mad if you do."
It was obvious by the sudden dent in Kakashi's mask that he had done the very appropriate and adult thing to do. He had stuck out his tongue. Tsunade rolled her eyes.
"Very mature, Kakashi, really, sometimes I think you should relax and stop acting so serious," Tsunade said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Just get rid of the food already. Let the animals have it. Well, the ones who are brave enough to try it, that is." Kakashi knew he had been beaten, and, shoulders slumped in mock defeat, he disposed of the "food".
Tsunade pointed to an ANBU member and said, "Hey, I know you can cook. Would you mind?"
"Not at all," a female voice said from behind the mask. She silently stood and headed off into the surrounding trees, coming back as few minutes later with four large rabbits in her grasp. She set to work skinning them. Sakura looked on sadly. The ANBU member flicked a glance at her.
"Don't look so sad. It's better than eating whatever Copy Ninja over there was cooking. You like bunny rabbits?"
"I have one at home," she replied. Sasuke snorted. He should have guessed that she would have a girlie sort of pet like a rabbit.
"Yes, well, I have five," the ANBU said. Suddenly, there was a rustling in the trees, and all the ANBU were instantly on their feet. A man appeared. He had long white hair with red tattoos on his face.
"Hey! Aren't you the one Naruto calls Ero-Sennin?" Sakura asked.
Jiraiya twitched.
Kakashi snorted. "Is that so, Ero-Sennin?" he said, stressing the name.
Jiraiya twitched again.
The ANBU relaxed and sat down again.
"You had to give us a scare, didn't you?" one of them asked. Jiraiya, the little shit, just smirked slightly and sat down near the fire.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he murmured, "I was just coming to check up on things"
"Liar," Tsunade said, "What are you really here for?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow mockingly.
"Am I not allowed to be concerned about my student? Lord knows Kakashi doesn't give a damn about them most of the time." Kakashi looked furious.
"It was a joke, Kakashi." Jiraiya said, "You need to lighten up. No, I am really just here because I don't have anything better to do."
Tsunade smirked.
"They threw you out of the ladies bath again, didn't they?"
Jiraiya went beet red.
"You really are an Ero-Sennin. It seems Naruto has the measure of you."
"I told him not to call me that," Jiraiya muttered angrily. The adults all laughed. Another ANBU voiced their opinion.
"Jiraiya, if it wasn't him, someone else would have. I mean, we don't even have to wonder where you are. If we wait long enough by the bathhouse, you'll show up! I'm surprised you don't introduce yourself as Ero-Sennin to other people."
Jiraiya dropped is glowing face into his hands. "What did I do to deserve this torture?" he asked to no one in particular. The ANBU all slid each other looks under their masks.
"Do you really want that question answered?" the woman asked. Jiraiya glared at her. Then his eyes fell on Naruto.
"Tsunade, did you use the jutsu I think you used?"
The Hokage merely nodded. "I was going to wake him up soon, though. He's been out for a while."
Sasuke listened intently to their conversation in hopes of learning more.
"Tsunade, this jutsu is a double edged sword! Do you know how sore he'll be for the next week? How tired you'll be?" Tsunade nodded again.
"I know, but it was for the best. You can wake him now if you want." The Sennin inclined his head, still muttering about how stupid women were, and knelt down next to the boy on the ground. He preformed a few seals, there was another soundless explosion that knocked Sakura sideways onto her Sensei, and Naruto stirred.
His huge blue eyes opened and blearily looked around, than he sat bolt upright. Pain distorted his features and he groaned.
"What the hell..." he muttered, rubbing his head. Tsunade gracefully knelt beside him, brushing a stray lock of hair off his face as she went. He moved away from her.
"Don't touch me," he said, stiffening. A frown creased Tsunade lips.
"Naruto, what's wrong?" she inquired, "Does it hurt too badly? I'm sorry."
"It's not that."
"Then what?"
"Nothing," Tsunade sat back on her heels. She looked confused.
"Naruto, I mean, are you all right? Did something happen?" she glanced around at the others, namely, Sakura and Sasuke, who were listening intently. There was silence for a few moments, and then Naruto answered.
"Yeah, something happened. A lot of things, actually. But there's something I want to know right now." Tsunade looked around again. "Later, Naruto, I think you should rest-"
"NO! I want an answer. I want one right now."
"Naruto! Not here. We'll talk later." Jiraiya spoke this time, with force. Naruto glared at him, his eyes flashing red.
"No. I want to know what really happened fifteen years ago. I want to hear it from you." Jiraiya growled deep in his throat and picked Naruto up by his collar, dragging him away from the group.
"What's the matter with you?" he hissed into Naruto ear. The blonde winced. His muscles were on fire!
"You're all liars!" he manages to spit out through his pain.
"You lied about everything!" Naruto, panting hard, hung limply in his jacket, which was still being help up by Jiraiya. Then he added an afterthought.
"Why am I so fucking sore?" he mumbled heatedly. Jiraiya smacked him over the head, and none too softly either.
"Language," he said warningly, "It's because of the jutsu Tsunade used on you. You'll be sore for while, but no lasting effects. Now what is up with you? Why do you seem to hate Tsunade all of a sudden?"
"Answer me!" Naruto snarled, "Tell me why the fox attacked the Leaf! Then tell me why you all lied to everyone!" Jiraiya sighed and set Naruto back down.
"Naruto, it's incredibly complicated."
"Like hell it is! How complicated could it have been to have told me the truth, huh? Now I have to find out like this."
"Naruto, I'm sorry if the truth is upsetting, but it was a law. We weren't allowed to tell you."
"It's not the truth that bothers me. It's the fact that you lied to me all these years. I mean, I thought I could trust you to always be honest with me. One of the few people I thought I could trust, but I guess I was wrong." Tears gathered in the corner of Naruto eyes and he stared at the ground. Jiraiya sat down.
"Naruto, I'm sorry. But I just can't tell you. It's against the law. You never should have even known about the fox. This just complicates things." He rubbed his eyes lightly with the tips of his fingers before pinching the bridge of his nose.
"When did things get so messed up?" he mumbled. Naruto sat down next to him, his temper cooled down.
"Ero-Sennin, did you honestly think that I would never find out? Already three people have been after the fox's powers. I would eventually have found out."
Jiraiya was quiet for a moment.
"I knew the time would come when you would eventually discover the spirit of the fox that dwells inside you. There are too many people, organizations, and entire nations seeking that kind of power. There will be prices on you. You would be worth much on the underground trade if you were ever caught." {1}
"I...just...I..."
"Feel betrayed," Jiraiya finished for him.
"Understandable. I would too," Naruto felt a but coming on, "but, what would you do in Yondaime's situation? He didn't even want to have to use a baby, much less you. But, in order for the fox spirit to be contained, there needed to be a living vessel for it. Had he sealed it within himself, the moment he died, it would have broken free." Naruto sighed.
"Perhaps that would have been better."
{1} Think of it as a Shinobi Black Market, if you will, where forbidden scrolls and techniques are sold, among other illegal items, and perhaps, even illegal slave trading. YAY! Short, I know, but YOU try finding time to write chapters living my life! Lol. For the last like 6 weekends I have had something I needed to do or a place that I needed to go with my family (fun not). I am SO SORRY it took this long, but it's been really really REALLY hectic for me lately. sigh I didn't like the chapter that much, either, now that I think about it.