Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, well, I'd be rich…
Author's blabbering: Here's chapter 2 of Survivor: Naruto. Thanks for those who had reviewed. And to Pink and Green and Black (did I get your name right?)who pointed out my mistake. I've edited it already! Hope you like this one too!
CHAPTER 2: GOING THERE AND STAYING PUT
Sakura huffed tiredly as she dragged her bag to the northern gate of the village where they were assigned to meet. She didn't know why her pack became so heavy. She just placed several clothes in it, her medical kit (just in case Naruto and Sasuke gets involve with a brawl with the former's mouth), her weapons and some scrolls. It wasn't that heavy last night… Unless…
She placed her pack down on the ground and started rummaging it. After a few minutes…
"NARUTO!"
The blond ninja looked at the direction of the voice and scratched the back of his head. He saw several birds flying out of the trees as the ground started to shake. He glanced at Kakashi who didn't even seem perturbed and at Sasuke who looked bored. He then stared at the shaking bushes in front of him and gulped. This is not good for him.
"Na-ru-to!" Sakura came out into the open, carrying several packs of instant ramen. Sasuke smirked at the blond Kyuubi boy who looked like death has finally found him. "What the hell are these doing in my pack?" She shoved him the ramen packs with so much force that several of them exploded.
"Sakura-chan…" Naruto looked teary-eyed as he stared at his ruined ramen packs. "I should've just put inside Sasuke-teme's pack…"
The Uchiha heir glared darkly at the Kyuubi boy as if daring him to do that.
Sakura let out a sigh and smiled at her two teammates. Ever since Sasuke came back, she was different. She had changed. She was no longer the obsessed fan girl who chases him around and fights with Ino over him. On the contrary, the two girls had made up and became the best of friends again, along with Tenten and Hinata. She had matured already. She now understood what real, true love meant and it was not chasing a guy all over, trying to chain him down. It was waiting patiently, giving her heart selflessly.
"Sakura! What took you so long?"
The pink-haired kunoichi smiled grimly at her sensei who was earlier than her. "You didn't get lost on the road of life, Kakashi-sensei?"
"Heh! Not this time, Sakura!" the man grinned at her then pulled out his favorite book.
"Sakura!"
She looked around and saw Ino, Shikamaru and Chouji walking over to them with Asuma, his usual cigarette stuck on his lips. "Ino…"
"Wow! You're the earliest team, and to think Kakashi-sensei's with you," the blonde remarked before latching on Sasuke's arm. "I can't believe we're in the same mission, Sasuke-kun!"
Sakura rolled her eyes as the girl squealed when Sasuke unlatched himself from her. "Shikamaru-kun!" She smiled at him then started talking about the weather and coincidence when a kunai whizzed past them. "What the—"
"Get back here, Gai-sensei! I am not through with you!"
Kakashi turned to Asuma then jotted something at the back of his book. Kakashi: 510, Gai: 511. He obviously couldn't get his students to chase and kill him with kunais. He must've done something great today.
After a minute or so, Gai and Lee came dashing out of the bushes, followed by several kunais, shurikens and senbons, all aimed at the two spandex-clad Green Beasts.
"Tenten, dear flower, you have to understand that what we did—" Gai stopped to dodge a senbon. "—was highly important for you—" He dodged another shuriken. "—We were just seeing if you—" He jumped a few feet in the air. "—were all right! Your youthful passion—"
"I don't care about my youthful passion!" the Weapons Mistress screamed as she collected more weapons from her bottomless pouch. "You didn't have to peek inside my bathroom while I'm taking a bath!"
"It wasn't our—" Lee covered his head with his arms. "—idea! It was Neji's!"
"What?" the Hyuuga prodigy growled angrily when he emerged from the new path created by his teammates, a dark death aura surrounding him like chakra. Lee started to cower. It was a mistake to say that. "It was whose idea?"
The other shinobis sweatdropped at the sight of Neji pummeling Lee to death and Tenten impaling her sensei to the wooden walls of the village. Kakashi grinned at Asuma. Some things never change even after all those years.
Kurenai arrived some minutes later with Shino, Kiba and Hinata and she threw a confused look at Gai, who was crying waterfalls of tears while pinned to the wall. "What happened to him?" She jerked a thumb at the respected Green Beast Jounin.
"Oh, you know, the love a student and a teacher shares," Asuma said nonchalantly, lighting another cigarette.
The large group of shinobis were still discussing and waiting for the Hokage to watch them off. It was a mission that requires them all. The Hokage would surely see them off. After all, they are known all over town and was trusted by the Hokage herself.
Sakura was seated on the ground, her chin in her palms, beside Shikamaru who was yawning and staring at the clouds again. Kiba was involved in a shouting match with Naruto who had just placed an arm around the typically shy Hinata. Shino was a few feet away, leaning on the wall where Gai was pinned. Neji and Tenten stood some feet away where a tree had just crashed and fallen due to the impact when Lee hit it. The Hyuuga had kicked him effortlessly. Again. Ino was shrieking at Shikamaru for being a lazy bum and Chouji was eating. Not that was any news to anyone. And Sasuke… Well, let's just say he's brooding. Again.
"Who else are we waiting for?" Sakura asked, looking up at their masked sensei.
Kakashi scratched his head and Sakura was vaguely reminded of Naruto. "Eh? The Hokage, Shizune-san and Jiraiya."
"Are we late?"
Everyone looked up at the voice and their jaws dropped. At least, most of them dropped their jaws. The Jounins, Neji, Shino and Sasuke didn't. Lee didn't as well since he's out cold. Shikamaru paled and muttered something under his breath.
"Told you it wasn't a good idea to come here," Kankuro said. He looked around as if expecting 10 or so ANBUs coming over and attacking them for no reason. "But, no! You really have to insist and if I didn't know you better, Temari—"
"Shut up, Kankuro!" Gaara hissed darkly at his older brother who promptly shut up. He's still afraid of his little brother, no doubt. "You are chatting incessantly again."
"Yes, Kazekage-sama," the puppet master said, his voice oozing with sarcasm. He later grinned apprehensively when the sand started to pour out of Gaara's gourd. "Okay…"
"You're the Kazekage?" Sasuke shot at the red-haired Sand Nin who fixed him a piercing glare. He snorted and glared back. And thus, the glaring match between Uchiha Sasuke and Sabaku no Gaara started.
"What the heck is with this mission?" Sakura asked, placing her hands on her waist and surveying everyone. "All of us got the same one and is going to an unknown island, probably deserted, and we're going to have a survival test! This feels more like a vacation or something!"
"Oi, you guys!"
A loud beep behind them startled the shinobis who nearly jumped a feet in the air. They turned to the source of the sound and (again) their jaws dropped. Ground, meet jaw. Jaw, meet ground.
It was a large bright yellow bus with a green Konoha symbol painted on the sides. The ninjas sweatdropped when Jiraiya bounded cheerfully out of the bus, wearing a blue button down shirt, black shorts and some sandals, followed by Tsunade and Shizune, who was holding Ton-Ton in her arms.
"Tsunade-obaa-san, are we going on a trip?" Naruto, being the loud-mouthed one, was the first to ask the question every shinobi had in mind. He was punched on the head by the Hokage. "Oww!"
"We're going to the mission site!" Tsunade called out in a clear voice. "Everything will be explained the moment we get there!" The shinobis said nothing. "All right? Get in!"
The Chuunins and younger Jounins got in first, filing in a straight line. There was a brief commotion as the girls were about to board, alternately hitting and whacking Jiraiya whenever he'd ask them to pose for his book. He got the loudest whack when Temari knock him with her large fan. Tsunade, hearing the girls' complain, started shouting at the poor legendary Nin and chucking different weapons at him.
"I'll sit beside Shikamaru!" Ino shrieked as she pulled the shadow master's arm towards her seat.
"No, I'll sit beside Nara!" Temari declared, tugging his other arm with a smirk.
"No, I will, you peroxide witch!"
"You just insulted yourself, girl! You also have a peroxide blonde for your hair."
"Shut up! I'll sit beside Shikamaru and that's final!"
"Hah! Like you can take him!"
Before the two girls could rip the poor shadow controller apart, Kurenai came up, trying to find out the cause of the ruckus. "Girls, girls," she said calmly, pushing them apart. "I'm sure Nara-kun would sit beside both of you on the three-seater, ne, Nara-kun?"
"Yeah, yeah!" Shikamaru waved an impatient hand and slid down on a seat beside the window. "You girls are so troublesome!"
"I get to sit beside Shikamaru!" Ino started yet another cat-fight with the blonde ninja from the Sand village.
"No, I get to sit beside him!"
The lazy shinobi got up again. "I'll sit between the both of you! Case closed!"
On the other end of the bus, Sakura was screaming at Naruto for pushing Sasuke on the aisle so he could get the seat beside Sakura. In the end, Naruto joined Hinata, who now resembled a ripe, healthy tomato, on a two-seater, much to Kiba and Neji's displeasure.
"He's making a move on Hinata-sama!" the Hyuuga genius growled as the Kyuubi boy draped an arm nonchalantly on the shoulders of the blushing Hinata. Ever since the Hyuuga Clan Head had passed away, he had taken over the task of protecting his cousin from danger. And that means protecting him from idiots namely Naruto. "I'll make sure he—"
"Oh, go get a love life, Hyuuga Neji!" Tenten said tersely. She was forced to sit beside him by the prodigy since he didn't want Lee to sit beside him. Neji scowled at her. "I'm serious, Neji! You should leave them alone and get your own love life!"
The white-eyed shinobi snorted. "Like you know how it is to have a love life!"
The Weapons Mistress glared at him darkly. The flowers wilted, the birds died but Neji remained unfazed by her glare. "And what would you know, Mister I'm-so-great-so-bow-down-and-worship-the-ground-I-walk?" she shot back irately. "Aren't you the most anti-social person in Konoha aside from Uchiha Sasuke?" She glanced over her seat and found Sasuke nodding and telling something at Shino. "At least the boy is now trying hard not to be anti-social anymore!"
Neji grumbled under his breath.
"Kakashi, old pal!" Jiraiya greeted and clapped the Jounin's shoulder with a hearty laugh. "I have a new inspiration today for the next volume of Icha Icha Paradise!"
The white-haired shinobi grinned behind his mask. "Really now? And what would that be?"
The legendary Nin grinned back and slung an arm over Kakashi's shoulders while looking at one corner of the bus as if they were star gazing or something. "I call it—" He raised a hand in front of them, palms facing outward. "—The Sea, the Sand and the Shinobis!"
The two white-haired Nins snickered loudly, earning a flying kunai aimed from Tsunade. A few Chuunins ducked at the incoming weapon that the two perverts just dodged.
"All right! Everybody in?" Tsunade stared at the sea of faces before her then turned to the steering wheel. "Let's go!"
A few moments later, the bus stopped with a screech and Tsunade looked around again to check the shinobis. She cursed under her breath when she noticed someone's missing.
"Did someone release Gai from the wall?"
They arrived at a beach a few kilometers from the Hidden Mist Village and the Mizukage welcomed them pleasantly, especially when he found out that the Hokage from Konoha and the Kazekage from Suna were coming as well. After the war against the Akatsuki and Orochimaru, the Kages from different villages and countries decided to make a pact and live in harmony, helping each other in times of need.
There were 5 boats on the beach, each team assigned to one while Tsunade, Jiraiya and Shizune joined the Sand siblings. They were going to row at the elegant white yacht anchored some meters away from shore.
"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto started as he got into the boat, looking over at the Sand siblings' boat. "Maybe we should invite ero-sennin to join us here."
Sakura's green eyes widened then slammed a fist on the blond's messy head. "No, Naruto! Do you have any idea what would happen to me if you do that?"
"Nani?" The Kyuubi boy rubbed the spot where Sakura hit him with teary eyes. "I'm just thinking that if all six of them would be in that small boat, it would sink! I mean, look at Tsunade-obaa-san! She's so la—" He abruptly stopped when a kunai flew past him, slicing a few strands of his blond hair.
"Stop right there, you brat!" Tsunade shouted at Naruto, ignoring Jiraiya and Kakashi's snickers. "I'll definitely slit your throat if you continue that statement!"
"Eh? But I was just going to say that you have large—" The Kyuubi boy halted again when two more kunais missed him by a few inches on his throat.
"Say one more comment about me and you'll die, Naruto!" Shizune was now trying to hold back a hysterical Hokage, terrified for the life of the innocent and clueless boy. "I swear!"
"Don't worry about us here, Naruto!" Jiraiya waved an arm at him, grinning. "I'm sure we'll stay afloat if we hold onto Tsunade—"
Whack!
"I have a really bad feeling about this trip." Tenten rubbed her bare arms as she watched Lee and Neji row the boat towards the yacht while Gai stood at the bow (front) of the boat like some captain pointing towards their destination.
"Ahaha! We shall beat my eternal and everlasting rival, Kakashi, on this youthful and symbolic test of courage and might!" Gai turned to the three Jounins and posed his Good Guy Pose. Tenten winced at the brightness of his teeth, flashing against the sunlight. "We shall prove to him that our determination is fuelled by our burning passion!" He jumped to face the front again, rocking the boat dangerously.
"Gai-sensei! You are such a daring and heroic hero! Yosh!"
The only female in the boat sweatdropped as Lee jumped to his feet as well, raising his oar like a victory sword. She held tightly on the sides of the boat as it continued to rock precariously. "Uh, guys, don't move too much. We might capsize."
"Do not be afraid, Tenten! I, Rock Lee, will vow to protect you!" Lee knelt before her and clasped her hands between his, his eyes fiery and determined. "I shall not allow the water to douse the budding flame of your—yoooouuuutttthhhh!"
The young weapons specialist blinked twice at the Hyuuga prodigy who had calmly stood up and punched the taijutsu master, sending him flying in the air and across the water, landing into Team 7's boat.
"Wow, nice shot, Neji…" She glanced at Team 7 and found Naruto screaming bloody murder at the crumpled Green Beast. Apparently, Lee had landed on top of him. "You really didn't have to do that though…"
"He was rocking the boat too much," the Byakugan-able boy said simply before sitting down and handing the oar that Lee dropped stonily to Gai. "Row." The Green Beast of Konoha obliged immediately without protest.
"Wow, did you see that?" Chouji had stopped eating as he stared at the projectile path Lee followed from Team 12's to Team 7's boat. "Neji's got a strong arm."
"And a well-calculated aim," Shikamaru said lazily, looking up at the clear blue sky. "He actually had calculated the range, the altitude and the vector force that would send the body to Team 7's boat in just a few seconds."
Ino raised an eyebrow at the lazy genius. "My, I didn't know we're learning physics today."
Shikamaru turned away from her. "You just don't understand any of it, Ino."
The blonde smacked him on the head before turning back to Team 12's boat. "Okay, but I wonder why Neji-san did it…"
"Probably because the guy was squirming and rocking the boat too much," Chouji said as he started stuffing himself with chips. Again. "Or could be because he had pissed Neji off when he held Tenten's hand longer than usual."
Ino looked thoughtful for a moment. "I don't know… I'd go with the first one though. The second one's highly unlikely."
Shikamaru leaned over the boat and stared into the water before turning to Chouji. "You know what, I'm pretty sure our boat is getting lower in the water than usual."
"Guys…" They turned to Asuma who was rowing the boat by himself. "Any help on paddling this boat?"
"Rowing is so tiring, boring and troublesome."
"I'm still hungry!"
"I'm a girl, Asuma-sensei! Do you expect a pretty and talented girl like me to row something as crude as this boat?"
"I guess not…" The Jounin sighed heavily and continued to row on his own. So much for team bonding.
"I didn't know Tsunade-obaa-san is rich!" Naruto exclaimed as he started running to the main deck to look at the water. He stood on the front-most part of the boat and raised his arms like in cross-position. "I'm the king of the world!"
Sakura threw the blond a rock (don't ask where she got it) on the head. "Stop spouting cliché lines from movies!" The boy rubbed his head for the nth time that day.
"Where exactly are we going anyway?" The two Chuunins heard Tenten ask Neji as the pair stood a few feet away from them, leaning back on the metal railings. "I'm getting really suspicious of this trip!"
Sakura shrugged at Naruto when he threw her a questioning look. The same questioning look Tenten threw Neji a while ago.
"Kids!" Kakashi walked over to them and dragged Naruto by the collar just like old times. "The Hokage wants a word with all of us."
"We're not kids anymore, sensei!" Naruto screamed, trying to get away from the Jounin's strong grip. Sakura followed them inside the cabin.
The yacht was a large one, accommodating all 18 shinobis, 2 Kages, an assistant and a perverted hermit quite comfortably. It also has all the luxuries a luxury cruise liner has, minus the swimming pool, a restaurant and those things. But then, there was a large elegant ballroom underneath that serves as a dining and conference hall. A bar was even produced inside the ballroom and Tsunade was eyeing it intently.
"We'll be arriving at the island in a few hours," the Hokage started finally after Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi had taken their seats. She cleared her throat, seeing that everyone was attentive. "Anyway, every one of you shall leave their packs here—" There was a sudden explosion of noise and commotions, protests and arguments. "—You will only bring your weapons and a few sets of clothes. And no ramen, Naruto!"
The Kyuubi boy whined and groaned as he sat lower in his cushioned seat. "Why not?"
Sakura raised a pale hand in inquiry. Tsunade nodded at her. "Hokage-sama, how come we're not bringing our packs with us?" she asked. "We are on a mission for 39 days. Don't you think it'd be better for us if we bring them?"
"No," the Hokage shot back sharply. "This is a mission to test your survival! You shall stay on that island without provisions. You shall look for your own food; make your own bed, et cetera."
There was another hand in the air and Tsunade raised an eyebrow at Gaara. "My gourd," he said flatly.
"Of course, Kazekage-sama, you may bring it with you." Tsunade looked around the group again. They were silent, all looking at her impassively, but she knew hundreds of thousands of questions were running in their minds. "No more questions?" Silence answered her inquiry. "My, my, you guys are really well-behaved today!"
Naruto raised his hand in the air. "Can I bring my ramen packs?"
A blood vessel twitched just above the Hokage's slim eyebrows. "Do you really want me to answer that again, Naruto?"
The boy gulped and shook his head, knowing that the next reply would be accompanied by something sharp and pointy. Not a good idea.
"All right, since there are no more inquiries, dismissed."
The group had finally arrived at their destination, a beautiful island just as large as the village of Konoha. It was an island paradise, the girls had agreed, with its white sand, blue-green waters and lush greenery. The boys, on the other hand, stared at the place skeptically. That is, except for Naruto, Lee and Kiba who all jumped into the water once they caught sight of the island. Of course, the older Jounins picked them up from the water before they could get away.
"Where's your cottage now, Temari?" Kankuro said dryly to his sister who gave him a loud whack on the head before following the other girls inside to change.
"What do you think?" Shikamaru nodded at the island some meters away from their anchored yacht.
"Tenten is right," Neji said flatly. "I'm getting suspicious also."
"Kids!" Kakashi called them again, followed by Asuma and Gai, and Naruto, who was wringing excess water from his shirt, started to shout again something about them not being kids anymore. "Main deck now! Chop, chop!"
The young men abandoned their places at the stern (back part) of the yacht and followed the Jounins to the main deck where the women were. When they reached it, the boys' jaws practically dropped and met the floorboard. At least, Kiba, Naruto, Lee, Kankuro, Shikamaru and Asuma's did. The others were impassive but at very, VERY intent observation, one would spot the pink tinge on their cheeks.
The girls were standing beside the Hokage and Kazekage, away from Jiraiya who was being held back by Gaara's sand. They wore bathing suits and had their shuriken holsters strapped on bare legs. Sakura, in her hot pink floral bikini was conversing animatedly with Tenten who wore a black-and-silver sports swimsuit, a spinning kunai on her forefinger. Hinata, with her jacket on top of her white bathing suit, was blushing furiously and was being teased by Temari in a fiery red bikini and Ino in a purple asymmetrical one piece suit.
Tsunade smirked at the dumbfounded men, especially at Asuma whose unlit cigarette had fallen down, when he saw Kurenai in a dark red swimsuit. "I suggest you pick up your jaws now, boys, so we could start." She was surprised none of them had fainted or nosebleeds.
Jiraiya was screaming in the background at Gaara for enclosing him in a cocoon of sand. The red-haired Kazekage did that to him when the perverted Nin tried to sneak up on his sister. Of course, Gaara didn't like someone trying to do that to his beloved sister.
When the men had finally glued their jaws back to their proper places, Tsunade started again, ignoring Jiraiya's pleads. "All right, now we're here, we'll start the mission. There will be two groups with a leader for each one. We'll call the groups Byakugan and Sharingan."
"Let me guess, the leader for Byakugan is Neji while the leader for Sharingan is Sasuke," Shikamaru said lazily.
"They're not exactly leaders. They are just going to choose the members for their groups," the Hokage said, motioning the two boys forward. "We have divided the teams equally so there will be no need for arguments regarding your teammates. I'll start with the Byakugan Team."
The blonde Hokage motioned Shizune who gave her a piece of paper. "Byakugan Team. Hyuuga Neji, Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba, Nara Shikamaru, Temari, Tenten and Yamanaka Ino." She nodded as the shinobis mentioned gathered on one side. "And for the Sharingan Team. Uchiha Sasuke, Akimichi Chouji, Hyuuga Hinata, Haruno Sakura, Kankuro, Rock Lee and Uzumaki Naruto." She glanced at Naruto who was waving his hand violently in the air.
"I thought you divided it equally!" the Kyuubi boy protested irately.
"Actually, I should be the one protesting, idiot," Neji said flatly. "I've got three females in my team while you only got two."
Tenten, Ino and Temari shot death glares at him, their weapons out and ready. No one insults the kunoichis of Konoha and Suna and gets away with it.
"We got dobe. Isn't that fair enough?" Sasuke shot back coolly, ignoring the spluttering Naruto.
The two prodigies glare at each other coldly. The others looked on as if expecting the legendary fight between the two number 1 rookies of Konoha: Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuuga Neji. But to their surprise and shock, the two suddenly smirked as if both hiding a secret.
"We're tied then," they both said at the same time then shook hands.
Tsunade looked from one prodigy to another apprehensively. "Oh-kay… Now let's move on with the mission proper. Each team will have their own territory or beach. Let me show you."
But before she could continue, Naruto raised his hand in the air again, Tsunade sighed wearily before nodding at him. "What is it now, Naruto?"
"How come Gaara isn't part of this mission?" the blond asked, unfazed by the Kazekage's cool and unwavering gaze. "Didn't they come here for that?"
"I'm the Kazekage, Naruto," the red-haired Sand Nin answered as if that itself explained it all.
"Huh? So what if you're the Kazekage? I mean, you could still go on with this mission, right?" Naruto continued to rant.
"I am the Kazekage, Naruto," Gaara repeated firmly.
"He's the Kazekage, Naruto," Tsunade said dismissively at the Kyuubi incarnate. "We can't argue with that logic, all right."
"But I don't get it—"
Tsunade cut him off. "Okay, where was I…? Right, I'll show you your respective beaches." She waved a hand at her assistant. "Shizune."
Shizune got a map of the island and showed it to them. There were several arrows, crosses, asterisks and smiley faces marked on the map.
"Okay, we're here!" Tsunade pointed at the smiley face marking on the blue color. "Now this—" Her finger went to a star-shaped mark this time. "—is the Byakugan Team's beach. And there on its side—" She then pointed to the heart-shaped mark a few inches from the heart-shaped mark. "—is the Sharingan Team's beach."
Naruto frowned at it, peering at it intently then holding his hand to it. "Wait, it's just… 6 inches far!"
"Baka!" Sakura whacked her teammate on the head. "That's just a map, you dofus!"
"Okay…" Tsunade cleared her throat and continued. "Your beaches are separated by a thick forest. The only way to get to the opponent team's beach is through the water, unless you wanted to venture into the jungle which is not a good idea."
"Why not?" the loud-mouthed, motor-tongued blond shinobi inquired, his small eyes still glued on the map.
"Because there's a lot of snakes there and other creatures!"
"Huh? You mean that island is Orochimaru's former lair?"
The Great Respected Hokage of Konoha wanted to impale right there and then the irritating ninja but instead ignored him for his sake. "Anyway, you should cooperate with your teammates to find your provisions and build your own camp. There will be several competitions held, either between the teams or between your teammates. And once every 3 days, there will be a tribal council. In this council, you will gather to vote out one of your members off the island whom you think is just a liability or such."
"I know this show!" Ino exclaimed loudly. "It's that Survivor show, isn't it?"
"Why, yes, Ino-san," Shizune replied cheerily. "Hokage-sama is very addicted to that show and she thinks that this activity would be good for shinobis like you."
The group suddenly started protesting, most of them complaining that the only reason they were sent in this silly mission is because of a stupid show that the Hokage likes. Some just wanted to add to the noise the group was making.
"Shut up, all of you!" There was a large blood vessel twitching on the Hokage's forehead and so, they all promptly kept quiet. "Now for the rules!" She raised her hand and started ticking off her fingers. "Rule number 1: No fighting, no brawling, no using other people as target practice, no any form of combating or hostility against your teammates. Rule number 2: No loitering around the jungle or no visiting other groups. Rule number 3: No going back to the yacht for any reason at all within the 39-day period. Remember, this is a test of your survival skills. Rule number 4: You must attend every challenge, every council meeting, every event. Rule number 5: No stealing of provisions from other teams. Rule number 6: No bringing of ramen packs or any kind of instant food there!" Her hazel eyes narrowed at Naruto.
"Um, question, Hokage-sama!" Sakura raised her hand. "How will we know what and when the next challenge is?"
"Your teachers will inform you," Shizune said in a bright tone. "They shall be monitoring you constantly."
"Your first challenge is to go to your respective beaches and build your shelter before dark," Gaara said flatly, reading a paper handed to him by the Hokage. "Are you ready?" His voice was strained and monotone, as if he was just forcing himself to speak.
"Yes…" the group replied with the enthusiasm of a zombie.
Tsunade frowned at them, placing her hands on her waist. "What's wrong with you guys? Where's your energy?"
"I think they left it back in Konoha, Hokage-sama," Kurenai remarked smilingly.
"Don't give me that excuse! I made this mission to liven you up—"
"The Hokage-sama is right, young leaders of tomorrow's future!" Everybody sighed as Gai started one of his speeches again. "You should be burning with youthful passion and enthusiasm! You must be fuelled by your flame of youth! Remember that this is not only a test of your survival but also a symbolic test of courage and determination! Now show us your flames of youth, Leaf Nins!" He flashed them his Good Guy Pose.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee cried passionately.
"Lee!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"LEE!"
Crickets chirped and the wind blew as everyone stared at the two hugging Green Beasts silently. Tsunade was looking at them with an unreadable expression on her face.
"Ah, er, Gai is right," the still skeptic-looking Hokage said. "You should be, er, fuelled by your burning passion and youth… Am I right?"
"No, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said casually. "I believe it was 'You should be burning with youthful passion and enthusiasm!' and it comes with his Good Guy Pose, the one with thumbs up and a toothy grin."
Tsunade threw him an Are-You-Kidding-Me look before turning to the waiting shinobis. "Well? What are you waiting for? Christmas?"
The supposed-to-be-energetic-and-lively Leaf shinobis took their packs wearily (thoroughly searched by the Jounins, in case Naruto stowed some ramen packs in one of them) and jumped into the water, concentrating their chakras in their feet to keep them afloat and dry. That is, except for the taijutsu master, Lee.
Tsunade watched the young Chuunins and Jounins as they skimmed on top of the water towards their respective beaches and cackled loudly. Jiraiya, who had been released by Gaara's sand already, was looking down now that the girls were already gone but suddenly perked up when he spotted Kurenai. The female Jounin immediately hid behind Asuma.
Mission accomplished! Tsunade thought as she cackled, ignoring the Kazekage's dark look at her.
So… What do you think? No good? Good? … Review please!