"That's still not enough." Zabuza said, borderline murderously, the dark eyes of his real body turning to look at us. His water clone was thrashing against my chakra bind. Its movement grew stronger, granting it a couple inches of wiggle room. It caused the glow of my chakra to flicker against his strength. My reserves were below one quarter.

That's what you think.

My next action was a calculated risk, however one worth taking. I gingerly lowered down to my knees, my glowing palms meeting the earth again, strengthening the light of my chakra infused hair.

POOF!

The second shuriken exploded into white smoke, billowing above the waters surface.

As the smoke wisped and curled along the edges, an orange outfit emerged. Naruto wielded a kunai knife with foxlike glory adorning his face, taking aim at Zabuza.

"No..." The Zabuza clone uttered in disbelief, eyes wide with shock as his body stopped struggling against my bind. Naruto tossed the kunai at Zabuza's real body with a shout. Zabuza wrenched his arm from the Water Prison containing Kakashi as the kunai soared at him. It shot past the assassin, disappearing below the dark waves.

"Sasuke..." Upon noticing the slack in opposing chakra, I called upon the dark-haired boy with a hushed tone. I slumped lower to the ground against my will, body growing sluggish. My forearms were uncomfortable as they pressed against the damp, cool forest ground. Tilting my head to look up at him as he stepped by my side, his eyes snapped to meet mine. Sweat rolled down my jawline and dripped to my arm, his eyes following it as it met my warm chakra and dissipated into the air.

Motioning my head over to the shell-shocked water clone still caught in my trap, I wordlessly communicated the opportunity of attack. Sasuke's eyes hardened when his gaze followed mine to the clone. He positioned three kunai amongst his fingers as he pulled them from his pouch with practiced ease. Sasuke readied his aim, throwing them all with precision in one swoop of his arm and flick of the wrist. They made contact, going down the length of the clones neck as the real Zabuza's head whipped at the noise. The kunai fell to the ground, shortly followed by water. I ceased the flow of my chakra when the water fell, appreciative I was already on the ground. My chances of falling over from exhaustion would be higher had I continued standing on my feet.

Zabuza's expression unnerved me. He stared at the kunai, playing back how Genin outsmarted him on both ends of the battlefield. His stare grew darker, shifting from the water until it landed on me and Sasuke, zeroing us both in his sight. Zabuza's arm raised high, gaining momentum to throw the shuriken, then he moved to launch it at me and Sasuke.

My mind went into panic as yet another change came to the sequence of events.

I sighed in relief as Kakashi raised his arm to block the shuriken, as he did the first time. Metal on metal rung in the air. Blood began to flow up the sleeves of Kakashi's shirt, showing that it still broke skin after hitting the metal plate. His clothes and hair dripped water, small droplets clung stubbornly to his spiky hair, weighing it down to frame his face.

"Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura." He called out, his voice firm and unwavering as he stared down our enemy. "Please, stand down and take a breath. I'll take care of the rest..."

Kakashi's a badass...

Thank you, Sensei.

The two Jounin struggled against the other's strength as they spoke, clashing and falling back. They were so fast, it was hard to keep up if you didn't stare unblinking. I mustered up enough energy to push myself back up to stand, relieved when their battle resumed as normal.

I scanned my surroundings for Tazuna, who had the smart idea to take shelter by a grand white oak tree. A troubled, guilty expression adorned his face. Maybe he was weighing the pros and cons of building his revolutionary bridge. Perhaps the sight of strangers, children from another village, offering their lives to protect his had shaken him. I hoped the bridge was something that still happened- the Naruto bridge needed to exist in this world.

I want a hot bath...

Sharp stings coming from my forearms drew my attention down to them, and I found them covered in mud. Bits of snapped twigs and rocks cut into my skin from the extended time they pressed into it. Cringing at the sensation, I smeared some of the mud away. In the distance, Kakashi and Zabuza both shouted something. Closer, a deep rumble and loud roar of rapid water. I found myself gaping as an approaching wall of water darkened the sky.

I don't have the speed or strength to evade a ninjutsu this powerful. My water style wont help me here either thanks to the low amount of chakra I have.

I lifted my arms, planning to protect my face from any debris in the water. The wall of water drew closer and closer to my puny form and I squeezed my eyes shut, pushing down the rising panic as I recognized I would end up trapped beneath the water in my exhausted state.

I don't want to feel that pain again.

My arms pulled back as the straps of my backpack jerked off my shoulders. Arms wrapped tightly around me from behind, forcing the back of my hands to press against my upper chest. The brush of familiar fabric and buckles on my palms told me it was Sasuke and I gasped at the surprise, squirming at the tickling sensation of hair against my neck. Sasuke leaped into the air with a strong burst of chakra, holding me tighter against him as we flew toward Tazuna's direction. I noticed that Tazuna was on the lower branches of the oak as we were descending towards it, Sasuke's pack at his feet.

Sasuke must have gotten him to safety first.

Good.

As we began to fall to the ground, he heaved my pack up into the air at Tazuna and shifted his hold of me so that I was against his side. I noticed both his feet still glowing with chakra and summoned some of my own so that his joints wouldn't take the brunt of our weight alone. Our illuminated heels dug into the ground, and by the time we staggered into our third step my knees began to buckle, the glow around my feet flickering out. Sasuke noticed and lowered his arm down to my waist, using our landing momentum to swing my body around his hip. He lowered me down between him and the oak, pinning my tired body against its trunk with his own. Palm and clothed forearm glowing as he pressed them into the bark by my head, shielding it from harm. His head lowered and he pressed his face against my neck as the blast of waves crashed violently against our lower bodies. The weight of his body against my own pushed harder with each subsequent wave and his soft lips moved against my skin as he cursed.

That was the last thing I remembered as my head lulled back against the rough bark of the tree against my will and darkness clouded over my vision.


"Zabuza is alive!"

...Kakashi?

"What the hell do you mean?!"

I stirred at the loudness of Naruto's shout, taking a deep breath in as I became aware of my surroundings and the coolness of a damp cloth on my forehead.

We must be at Tazuna's...

"Aren't you thinking too much?"

I wish I could stop. My head is pounding.

"Especially Naruto!"

I blinked my eyes open slowly, shapes of familiar people blurred as they talked heatedly amongst themselves. Kakashi was sitting up in a bed mat by mine, the boys seated at the foot.

"Who the hell are you?!"

My eyes found the smallest of the shapes that entered the room moments ago.

Inari.

"Inari, say hello and greet these people properly. They are the ninja who protected your grandfather's life, after all!" Tsunami, who stood to walk over to her son, said with thankfulness evident in her tone.

"Mom, these people are just going to die." The little boy deadpanned, pointing at Naruto. Inari's eyes flitter over my covered form, then made eye contact with me, startling a bit. He didn't realize I was awake and staring back at him.

"What did you say, you little brat?!" Naruto bit back at the boy with annoyance dripping from his tone, and Inari's eyes snapped back to his. I took that distracting moment and carefully pushed myself up into a sitting position, the damp cloth on my forehead falling onto my lap.

"There's no way you can win against Gatou." Inari said, his voice quiet. Sasuke grabbed the collar of Naruto's jacket when he wound up his fist, yanking him back as he was getting ready to scuffle with the dark-haired child glaring up at him. The sight almost made me laugh. It reminded me of his relationship with Konohamaru back home.

"I'm a super hero, kid! One who will become an incredible ninja called the Hokage someday! I don't know who this Gatou guy is, but let's get one thing straight, he's nothing against me."

"Pft..." The little boy's eyes narrowed and he stared at the floor. "What are you, stupid? There's no such thing as a hero!"

The painful pounding in my head increased from the consistent noise, but it was nothing compared to the fit of coughs that racked my body and squeezed every ounce of air from my lungs. When the wave of coughs passed, I sucked in a deep, painful breath and peered up at the crowd of worried eyes.

"Sakura, glad to have you back with us." Kakashi's mask shifted as he smiled at me, though his eye was sharp and calculating as it regarded my slouching form and heavy rising and falling of my chest. "You really did a number on your body, using up your chakra. I've warned all of you about the dangers of pushing your body past its limits. I've got to say, you're the last student on this team I expected to try and pull something like that off so... recklessly." My gaze shifted back to Inari as Sensei began to lay into me, and the boy's cheeks immediately flushed when he was caught staring again.

"Inari, father, please come help me prepare dinner." Tsunami pulled her son along with her towards the kitchen, sensing the need for privacy. Tazuna appeared to be conflicted, wanting to say something, but he followed along shortly. When they were outside of immediate earshot, Naruto growled, rising to stand.

"Kakashi-sensei, why are you being so harsh on Sakura-chan!" Naruto's foot slapped against hardwood as he turned his body to Kakashi's. He pointed accusingly at our sensei, clearly considering it to be an injustice that I was, for once, on the receiving end of a scolding. "You didn't even get on to me about getting in the middle of you and Zabuza!"

"Let me finish, Naruto. Go help Tsunami with dinner." Kakashi said evenly, exasperation in his tone, one that promised 'you're next, if you push your luck'. From my peripheral vision I saw he'd turned his lone eye back to me after the yellow-haired boy's mouth had clicked shut with gritted teeth. I fidgeted with the loose tape of one of my bandages as Naruto's departing footsteps thumped softly. It was only me, Kakashi and Sasuke at this point. The silence was loud, but Kakashi spoke up before too long.

"What if Sasuke didn't make it to you in time and you were forced to try to access your chakra again? I hope you know the implications of that. You could have died."

All I want is a bath and a nap...

"Sakura, look at me." Heat was rising up my neck as I lifted my gaze from the bandage, catching Sasuke staring at me from the foot of my mat. An odd expression decorated his face, though I didn't have the time to try and decipher it as my eyes made their way to meet Kakashi's lone one. The silver-haired man raised his hand and brought it down on my head, ruffling my hair. A strange sensation, lighter than it should have, thanks to my impromptu haircut from Zabuza. The surprise and confusion on my face must have amused him, because he started chuckling through his mask.

"I'm proud of you." My breath caught in my throat at the words and I swallowed as a knot began to form in it. "You successfully protected your teammates and the client. I think I can overlook everything else, so long as you're more careful with your own life in the future."

"Thank you, Sensei..." I mumbled, cursing the way the warmth crept to my cheeks as I stared off at nothing. My fingers flexed on their own accord, tightening the grip I had on the blanket. "I promise I'll be careful." At that, he withdrew his hand from my head and hummed to himself as he considered something.

"I didn't expect you to wake up until tomorrow, to be honest. Late night at the earliest." I blinked at that, realization dawning on me as I recalled the state of my body and reserves when I passed out.

Water creeping up my exhausted body, the bite of its temperature leaving my skin with the sensation of pins and needles, soaking my clothes.

Harsh edges of the bark digging into my shaking form and the cuts on my arms.

"Fuck!"

Sasuke's breath against my neck when he cursed, soft lips brushing against my skin.

I shivered at the memory.

"Sasuke, can you help Sakura get to the shower before dinner?" Sasuke and I both turned our heads towards Kakashi, then at each other. Sasuke had some hesitancy and annoyance to his expression, his brow furrowing at the request. I recognized that Sasuke was in his sleep clothes. He must have showered earlier.

"I can make it on my own." I said, begrudgingly pushing the warm blanket down from over my legs. Someone had undressed me and replaced my wet overclothes with a plain gray t-shirt and mid length, blue skirt. Tsunami, I guessed. A white bandage had been taped over my forearms, covering the cuts. It was a kind consideration, but the tape had rubbed off my skin in my sleep and it couldn't take much more before it would come off. Before Kakashi could open his mouth in protest, I was pushing myself up to stand, immediately falling down to the hardwood floor as my joints locked up. My muscles screamed from the effort and I winced at the pain coming from the skin of my exposed arms and knees.

Then someone was lifting my arm up, and a radiating warmth pressing against my side. Sasuke carried my weight as he helped pull me up off the floor, making me bite my lip at the wave of helplessness that washed over me.

I'm not able to stand up and walk by myself...?

Kakashi picked my pack up from the rest, piled up behind our bed mats, and offered its strap to Sasuke. Sasuke grabbed the strap, slinging it over his free shoulder.

"N-no, really, Sasuke," I began to stutter, but silenced my protests when he rolled his eyes and stared at me. He was so close to me that I could spot flecks of varying shades of deep gray in his irises. I stared back down at the floor, signifying that I would accept defeat. This time.

We were both silent as I wobbled along with him towards a short hallway. It was a bit of a struggle getting up the small set of stairs. My leg shook as I lifted it to climb up the first step, causing me to tighten my hold of Sasuke's shoulder in reflex. Despite that, my balance still teetered as I lifted my other leg up, and Sasuke wrapped his other arm around my waist to help keep us steady. We made it to the top after a minute of slow climbing and rounded the corner, arriving at the bathroom entrance. It appeared cramped but it had all the essentials. Toilet, sink, shower. The yellow wallpaper had faded and peeled back from the walls at the top, some sections torn off and missing. The tan tiles of the floor had some cracking, colors worn down into white at the high traffic areas. Still clean, just old and in rough condition.

Sasuke led us to the closed toilet, easing me down to sit on the lid of it. He stood in front of me now, a bit closer than either of us would have preferred. He lowered his shoulder, shrugging off the strap of my pack until it slid down his arm into his hand. He stared down at me for a moment, but placed my pack on my lap. I pulled on the zipper of the largest opening, mumbling my thanks as I dug for my rolled up towel. He turned to the shower, pushing his hands past the blue shower curtain. A low, distinct whistling noise made me tilt my head, though the noise of the shower spraying into the tub drowned it out.

"I'll be back in 15 minutes." He said as he walked past me. My eyes followed him as he exited the room, closing the door for me. I continued staring at the door, my eyes drifting down to the lock. Part of me wanted to turn it, but that was a stupid idea in my current physical state.

This will suck for a few days.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts as I dug in my bag for a change of sleeping clothes and some of my shower items. The underclothes were fresh, courtesy of my smart packing and rotation during our long travel. I had worn these pants and the shirt one time since we last washed our clothes in the forest. It all smelled clean enough.

The sight of a mixed and splotchy variation of dark blue and purple bruises on my knees drew a sigh from me and I moved over to sit at the edge of the tub. Thankfully it wasn't hard. It did take some careful hand placements and fluid movement.

Once I got the bandages off my arms, I leaned my head back, allowing the warm water to soak into my hair. Rubbing some shampoo in my hands, I raised them to smooth it over my hair. I worked it into my roots and down my hair, a frown pulling at my lips as I rubbed the uneven ends. I gathered a generous squeeze of conditioner and smoothed my locks down so I can see what length was salvageable. The longest length was towards the front and still came down above the small of my back, though the back section came mid shoulder blade at its shortest length.

That'll take some effort to fix.

When it came time to stand up in the shower to wash my body, I leaned against the wall for the most part, unable to support my full weight. Savoring the heat of the water on my sore muscles. I endured a physical exhaustion comparable to this one time before, due to a bad illness I had as an older child.

At least I'm not soaking in cold water trying to fend off fever dreams this time.

After I finished washing and towel drying, a couple light knocks rapped on the door.

"I'm almost dressed!" I shouted, eyes trained on the doorknob as I pulled the pajama pants on, one leg at a time.

I hope that's Sasuke coming back and not someone that might accidentally walk in on me.

"You can come in." I called out, gathering my damp hair from inside my shirt after I pulled it on. The door opened and Sasuke stepped in, his eyes slowly raising from the floor to look at me. It was a surprise to me when he pulled some of my medical supplies out of my bag and placed them on the counter. Sasuke held his hand out expectantly, looking at my forearms.

There was a comfortable silence as he began taping bandages back over the cuts on my arms. When he finished, I stared in confusion as he unbuckled his arm warmers and slid them over my arms, fastening them comfortably snug against the bandages.

"It should help with the tape issue."

We repeated the same steps as before after that. His hand wrapped around my wrist, my arm around his shoulder. His other arm immediately came up to my waist when we reached the top of the steps, his hold on me stronger than I remembered it being when he helped me up the first time.

I'm guessing he doesn't want to fall down the stairs with me.

...

"Sasuke?" I spoke softly, focusing intently on the next step. The ends of his hair tickled my neck as his head tilted towards me, though his attention also stayed downcast.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you," I said, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves. "For everything."

...

"Hn." I smiled at his response, relief washing over me.


Naruto noticed Sasuke's arm warmers almost immediately. He didn't say anything, though it felt like he stared at them often. The rest of the night went by smoothly. I did feel some tension around Inari. Naruto and him were both quieter now, and I presumed I had missed the discussion of his father while I was in the shower. Tsunami brought me and Kakashi dinner to eat at our bed mats, since we didn't have the energy to get up and eat dinner at the table with the rest of them. Kakashi made great company, bringing me up to speed on the information that Zabuza was alive and had a partner. A partner with a hunter-nin's mask.

It didn't take as long as it normally did for me to fall asleep after that, the hot food spreading a comforting warmth throughout my body. I slept through the night into the morning of the following day, startling awake at noon from a loud noise. The low rumble of thunder shook the house and rain pattered against the metal roofing and outdoors.

"I'm sorry for waking you, dear." Tsunami said to me, frowning as she spoke, closing the last of the double paned windows. "An unexpected tropical storm moved in from the East and I just realized I left all of the windows open last night to air out the house."

I love thunderstorms.

"It's okay, I needed to wake up anyways."

I could get up with my own strength now, but embarrassingly enough I still needed help getting up the stairs to the bathroom. Kakashi's able to make it on his own thanks to crutches he acquired from Tsunami, albeit he hobbled like I did. Naruto and Sasuke traded off helping me stairs. Whoever designed this house so that its single bathroom was upstairs, I cursed every time I had to go.

There was some fear with Naruto as he helped get me there and back. It seemed like he got distracted by the close physical contact with me. I supposed it made sense, given his liking towards Sakura and inexperience with girls, but the way he would lose focus made me nervous. He'd stopped us at the top on the second bathroom trip he helped me with, complaining of the limited supply of ramen he had for our trip back home. I didn't notice that my wet hair dripped on the first step of the stairs until my foot landed wrong on top of it and I slipped. Naruto immediately lost his hesitant grip on me as I fell, knocking him off balance. He went tumbling down to the bottom of the stairs, while I fell on my butt at the top step.

"What happened?" Sasuke rushed over, his concern evident, morphing into confusion as his gaze searched his surroundings. When he found me at the top, the realization of what happened hit him and the anger on his face was prominent as he crossed his bare arms. He glared down at Naruto, still sprawled on the floor at the foot of them.

"Naruto! How can you be this clumsy when you're not even injured, you idiot?" He snapped at the boy.

"Who are you calling an idiot?!" Naruto yelled back, glaring back up at him, nursing the bump on his head.

"If you can't figure that out, you're stupider than I thought."

I sighed quietly to myself, still seated on the top step, fidgeting with the buckles of Sasuke's arm warmers as the boys fought.

How much longer will I need help like this? A day, two days?

I feel so... small.

I missed my independence.

My sigh picked up both of their attention and Naruto flushed as he stared up at me, scrambling to sit up on the floor, sheepish guilt spreading over his face.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-Chan! It just surprised me when you slipped like that, I'll be more careful next ti-" Sasuke pushed past Naruto, jogging up the steps, causing the boy to fall again.

"Hey!" Naruto growled after him. Sasuke met me on the top step and offered me his hand. I stared at in astonishment for a second and quickly accepted it, my face got warm as he pulled me up and brought my arm up to wrap around his shoulder. Every other time he would keep a firm grip on my wrist, but this time he continued holding my hand. He gave me a moment to lean into him and find balance before guiding us down the stairs.

After that, Sasuke was the one helping me travel the stairs, hanging out beside my mat the rest of the afternoon and evening. Sharpening his ninja tools, organizing his supplies. He spent some time reading the newer journal I brought with me and offered to him a few nights before, when he couldn't sleep. Sasuke played it off well, but it was obvious what he was doing, and Naruto seemed to get the hint. He volunteered himself the task of helping Tsunami hand wash and hang dry clothes the rest of that day. She gave him tips to take home with him; how to get certain stains out, what you would add to bring fragrance to your clothes.

Tsunami even helped me fix my hair after she started preparing fish for dinner. I returned the favor by peeling and cutting up the potatoes and carrots for her, keeping the scraps separate in another bowl. She said she used the scraps for compost that they would add back to the garden she was trying to maintain for food.


On the third night in the Land of Waves, I had enough strength back to make it to the bathroom by myself, but it wasn't enough for much else. We learned that when I tried to help Tsunami wash the bed mats. They washed them a bit differently than we did back in Konoha.

"So then you just toss 'em in, stomp on them for a while so that all the dirt gets pulled from the fibers. Pull it out, wring out the excess water, then hang it up!" Tsunami smiled as she explained it to me. "It's a pain, but I find it helps me get out any negative feelings that I've been holding onto."

"Hmm. Okay, let me try." I said, climbing into the large wooden bucket of soapy water to step on the cloth, forcing the air bubbles free. From there, I began stomping, working my way up to a steady rhythm. Sweat began to form on my brow after a few minutes and I swayed when a dizzy spell hit me. I clutched at the rounded edges of the bucket to keep from falling over when my vision got fuzzy. The edges of my shorts got a bit wet as my body slouched down closer to the water.

"I think I've seen enough. Sakura, go back to the kitchen table and rest there until the mats are dry. I'll help Tsunami finish the rest." Kakashi ordered from his seat at the sliding doors that led to the backyard. I murmured my thanks to Tsunami as she helped me step from the bucket and led me over to Kakashi, who smiled through his mask as he offered up one of his crutches. I begrudgingly accepted it.

Tazuna had rested long enough from the journey home at that point and wanted to start work back up that morning. Sensei appointed the boys to guard duty at the bridge. They didn't return until the sun began to set.

On the fourth night, I learned that they didn't have the discussion of Inari's father, like I assumed they did the first night. Naruto was the one to notice and point out the torn photo this time. I froze midbite of my last roll, forgetting that Sakura was the one who found that little detail. The entire house grew silent and I lost my appetite immediately.

"That's my husband..." Tsunami spoke softly over her shoulder from the kitchen, stacking the dirty dishes up beside the sink. Her hair covered her eyes but the way her shoulders tensed up and fell signified the emotions she struggled to contain.

"And the man called the hero of the city." Tazuna finished sadly, eyes glossed over. Inari immediately pushed his chair back from the dining room table, legs squeaking against the floor, his eyes shadowed by his hat. His mother turned in the kitchen at the noise.

"Inari, where are you going?" His mother asked, following him as he bolted from the room. The door slammed shut as she reached it, her hand outstretched. The air grew tense as her chest heaved from the heavy breaths, hand falling to her side limply. My gut twisted, memories of tense family moments coming back to me. Her eyes were shining and narrowed as they met her fathers.

"I've told you not to talk about that man in front of Inari." At that, she opened the sliding door, stepped from the room and closed it. Which, judging by Tazuna's face, was worse than if she'd slammed it.

"I'm sorry about that." Tazuna said after a tense beat, the empty chair where Inari sat moments ago locked in his sights.

"There seems to be an explanation for it..." Kakashi prodded gently, his eye moving to look at the old man.

Tazuna told us Kaiza's story and his family's greatest heartbreak that night.

Team 7 took care of cleaning up dinner that night in silence. Naruto washed the dishes. I sat on the counter, towel drying them as he handed them over. Sasuke took the dried dishes from me and put them in their respective places. We worked together slowly, absorbed in our thoughts after learning the horrors that the family and village went witnessed and endured.

Public dismemberment. Execution. Despicable...

On the fifth day, my chakra reserves were almost back to normal. Kakashi had graduated from his crutches. We were sitting across from each other at the dining table. The retelling of Inari's father's death played back in my brain for some time. Labelled a terrorist in his last moments, by an oligarch who cheated his way into a lifetime of security by exploiting communities until they became impoverished. I wasn't sure how to correct it, but I recognized that sitting here, doing nothing, would do us no favors in the battle that laid ahead.

Eventually, something clicked for me. Naruto's words and reaction to the story hadn't changed, and they played back in my mind just as Kaiza's death did.

The timeline had changed.

I changed.

I'm going to prove that in this world, heroes do exist!

So why not change more?

"Kakashi-Sensei," I spoke, tearing my eyes from the blank, unwritten page in my journal that I'd been staring at for the past 20 minutes. I still held my pen in my hand, hovering over the first line of the page this entire time. The low hum that came from the silver-haired ninja reading across from me urged me to continue. "Will you teach us the water walking technique tomorrow?"

He peered at me from over his book, brow raised. I held my unwavering gaze on his lone eye, determination bubbling in my core.

"Well, that's the last thing I expected to hear coming from you. And after all that time spent waiting for you to speak up. That's more advanced than tree climbing. Are you sure your body will be ready for that?" He questioned, laying his book face down on the table as he leaned back into his chair, observing my face. I nodded mutely, mulling over what to say.

"Yes, I feel like my energy will be back to normal then. I think it would be useful for me and the boys to get some specialized training, in order to prepare us for the inevitable."

It went unspoken that the inevitable was a battle, presumably to the death, with an assassin and their mysterious, young partner.

"After all, we're in the Land of Waves. What kind of ninja would we be if we couldn't fight on the most common terrain here?" I added after our shared, brief silence. I offered Kakashi a small smile at my lame joke and defense.

I don't know if he's going to agree. This is harder for Genin to pick up on than the tree climbing exercise... It took the boys a full week to get that down at the Leaf village, with help.

"You have a point." Kakashi sighed, rubbing a hand over his masked face tiredly, though I could see the light twinkling in his eye. "We'll get to work tomorrow then."


A/N: Tbh I wrote 1/4 of this in a month and the last 3/4ths in one day while I was in hyperfocus ADHD mode. Sorry if there are any errors I didn't catch in the final editing stage, I hope you enjoyed!