True Freedom Chapter 3: A NaruSaku Moment, a naruto fanfic

All right! Next chapter. Keep in mind the song isn't one of my favorites, but it's lyrics are extremely appropriate. I'll put in more songs as well, but anyways, onward!

"All right, in commemoration of your graduation, we're going to have a dance! Its traditional to have this two or three months after the graduation, as you'll have gotten to know your teams by then. It will be on Friday." Iruka said and left.

As he left, a buzz filled the room.

"Who are you going with?"

"I'm hoping..."

"You?"

"Yeah..."

"He's so hot... Totally."

"I know, I would, but I can't..."

Everyone talked about who they would go with, what they would do, and simply clumped together in their usual groups.

Naruto sat on the corner... What could he possibly do? It's not like Sakura would go with him... Would she? Well, it couldn't hurt to try, right? Well, sure, if she said no he would be embarrassed, but he had been embarrassed before, right? So it was worth the try, right?

"Yeah, Sakura!"

"Do it!"

"It'll so totally ruin him!"

"I'm not sure if I should --" but Sakura's protests were cut off.

"Come on, you can do it!"

"It'll be so funny!"

"Okay..." she agreed.

All the girls silently cheered.

Naruto approached her nervously. "H-Hey, Sakura-chan! I was wondering, if, you'd like, togotothedancewithme." he rushed the end. Mentally, he slapped himself for that – she surely wouldn't say yes after that, I mean, come on!

"Okay, sure."

What was he thinking! Obviously she wouldn't say yes, seriously, he was an idiot... What kind of... "It's okay if you don't want to, I... Wait..." Did she... Could she have just... "Did you just say yes?"

Sakura slowly nodded. "Yeah..."

"YES! THANK YOU SO MUCH SAKURA-CHAN! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!" he jumped away happily...

Inside, Sakura felt bad that she was about to ruin someone with that much enthusiasm and happiness.

That Friday, everyone came. Naruto came in a suit (which to his disgust was not orange, but he thought it was worth it for Sakura,) and Sakura, too came.

The boys' jaw dropped. Of all the people, Naruto had gotten Sakura? It was too good to be true! Right? But then why was he coming to her? The girls, however, knew what was going to happen, and they all anxiously waited, snickering to themselves.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!"

"Naruto? What are you doing?"

"I'm your date, remember... You said --"

"Why do you keep following me? I said, I wouldn't go with you! Now get lost, loser!"

Because you were the first person who ever showed me kindness...

"I'm sorry... You're right..." He chuckled, though tears came in his eyes. "What was I thinking. I'm sorry, so sorry. I shouldn't have wasted your time." Suppressing the tears, he said, "I will leave you alone, Sakura-san."

At that time, I was eight... Hated by everyone, not knowing what happiness, love, joy, or compassion was... I had been beaten up by some boys... heavily wounded... You came, gave me an apple, and made me feel better... You called me strong... That was the first moment in my life when I experienced joy... kindness... compassion... I thought you would be the same as you grew up... But obviously, I was wrong... So, Sakura-san, I will leave you alone... But not for the reason you think.

I woke up early this morning around 4 a.m.
With the moon shining bright as headlights on the interstate
I pulled the covers over my head and tried to catch some sleep
But thoughts of us kept keeping me awake
And ever since you found yourself in someone else's arms
I've been tryin' my best to get along
But that's ok, there's nothing left to say, but

Take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
Take your space and take your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothing left to weather
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me

I went out driving trying to clear my head
I tried to sweep out all the ruins that my emotions left
I guess I'm feeling just a little tired of this
And all the baggage that seems to still exist
It seems the only blessing I have left to my name
Is not knowing what we could have been,
or what we should have been, so...

Someday I'm gonna run across your mind
But don't worry, I'll be fine
I'm gonna be alright
While you're sleeping with your pride
Wishing I could hold you tight
I'll be over you, and on with my life

So take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
And take your cat and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothing left to weather
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better
but you'll think of me

So take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need 'em
Take your space and all your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cat and leave my sweater
'Cause we got nothing left to weather
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me, yeah

And you're gonna think of me oh yeah
Ohh someday baby, someday
Ooohh…

--You'll Think of Me

By Keith Urban

Dumped... Right there... That... didn't just happen... It couldn't have happened... Right? They all wanted to laugh at him, but... it just didn't seem right... It was even awkward.

"Heh... Um... That was funny..." someone started.

"A-All right... Um, go Sakura!" another followed.

"D-Did you see his face?"

"I know!"

"Yeah, he was all like crying!"

Slowly, people began laughing.Naruto quietly slipped away... Typical... Just, typical... He knew it was too good to be true... He had wasted pretty much an entire week's allowance on the suit, and now there was no point... As he walked home, it began to rain. Taking out his umbrella, he shielded himself from the rain, although he really wouldn't have minded if it did rain on him. Reaching his apartment, he took off his suit and simply crashed on the sofa... He didn't care if he was just in boxers; he was alone anyways... Not like it mattered... No one cared... The world didn't care... He was tired, tired of showing a fake Naruto, tired of losing, and tired of people's attitudes towards him... He didn't care anymore... It seemed like it was pointless. Sakura had changed so much... He remembered when he could perfectly see through her, every feeling, every thought, every movement... He understood her perfectly... Now... Now it was gone... She was an enigma which he didn't have the patience or the time to chase after and solve. That was it... He wouldn't show his mask anymore... Sakura... was lost... He would have to move on and look for others to show that kind of compassion to him... He wouldn't hide his true nature anymore; he would simply work on his ninja skills alone... He was tired of chasing after her, tired of pretending that Sasuke stole the spotlight... It didn't matter to him anymore – all those people wouldn't acknowledge him if he were God... He knew that much... But he didn't want to... It was time he focused on training and not on impressing others. The day his shot at being hokage would come, and he would have to train... Yes, it would come... but he wanted the present... he wanted Sakura... Tears now came to him, and, slowly, he faced the truth... He would have to. Tomorrow would be a different day... They had another C class mission... Something to do with a farmer... and he would need his sleep.That was the day you finally matured, Naruto... That was the day the true Uzumaki Naruto came out, and from then, you got better... It was just like Hokage-sama said... Left you alone... Gave you compassion... Time... and you bloomed... Iruka shook his head and walked out. He wasn't in the mood. Sakura had always been one of his brightest students... Perhaps he was wrong.

The next day, Naruto came to the training ground, the agreed meeting place for the next day's mission. Naruto was about five minutes late, but it didn't matter, as Kakashi wasn't here yet – and wouldn't be for another half hour... probably.

"You're late, Naruto!" Sakura said, a little annoyed.

Silence.

"Naruto?"

"Yes, Sakura, I know..."

Naruto walked away a bit, sat down, and began meditating. The scrolls had said meditating improved chakra control, as it it brought one closer to one's self. Quietly, he meditated.

What the hell? Naruto?

"Why don't you leave him alone... " Sasuke said. Naruto had actually spoken with Sasuke before, and he understood how Naruto felt. It was fine; Sasuke had gotten to know the real Naruto (without Naruto knowing,) and he could tell when Naruto was faking and when he wasn't. During the Haku battle, for instance, Sasuke had noted the change in Naruto's personality, and figured he had been faking to impress people.

Silence.

"Hey team! I got lost on the path of life."

Surprisingly, there was no annoying response.

Awww. It's no fun if I don't get to annoy people... Jeez...

"Are we leaving now, Sensei?" Naruto smiled.

Kakashi mentally noted Naruto's new mood; he, too, had heard about the incident from the other jounins. So he's finally decided not to fool around anymore... He's going to change drastically from now on...

"Anyways, let's go on our mission. We have a C class mission. Apparently, we have to go to a nearby village, about only three days away, and help a farmer guard against thieves. Should be pretty simple – I'm expecting their usual ruffians... Shouldn't be too hard. Let's go."

"Finally!" Sakura excaimed.

Naruto got up quietly, smiled, and quietly hummed to himself. Meditation helped greatly, actually, it put him in a good mood, rid him of his worries, and it had the training benefits. He experimented with his chakra, and was able to put eighty percent of his chakra into it, spin it at maximum speed, and still maintain it in a perfect sphere – it showed his chakra control was improving. Also, he had gone into a new training program – thanks to Mizuki, he was well aware that his acute senses were due to the fox. He had five times the hearing of a regular human, three times the eye sight, and four times the smell. Foxes actually depended on their sense of hearing the most, and thus, his hearing was the most dramatically increased, followed by his smell and eye sight. Now, he was working on being able to fight with his eyes closed – he could tell which body part was moving by simply hearing, and he could accurately smell, up to the inch, how far away his enemies were. Of course, it took a lot of concentration to do this, so he was working on being able to tell faster and sharper, as he wouldn't have that much time in a fight.

While they walked, Sakura noticed it was unusually quiet – Kakashi was reading his book as usual, and Sasuke was quiet as usual as well, except for his short conversations with Naruto or Kakashi. It was usually Naruto who stimulated the conversations or actions, otherwise, they would all mind to themselves... It was only now that Sakura realized it was to Naruto that she spoke with most of the time. She didn't mind, though, right? Right... Of course she didn't mind! She could talk to Sasuke whenever she wanted, right? Yeah! In fact, she would, right now! Totally. "Hey, Sasuke, do you --"

"Get lost."

Ummm... See! She spoke with him, right? Yeah... That was... fun... Right? Yeah, yup... Definitely... That was... really fun, in fact! But inside, despite all her justifications, she knew it was far too quiet...

Naruto was never happier – he didn't have to fake something he wasn't anymore, he had no worries, and his training was rapidly progressing. True, the real Naruto Uzumaki was still loud, overconfident (only slightly,) and yes, still an idiot – but he wasn't someone who meaninglessly chased after Sakura, or one who pulled pranks, or someone who needed attention. Yes, he could never be mean to Sakura, but he wasn't an ass who was meaninglessly shot by Cupid. Happily, he looked at all the birds and nature around him... He liked it... It... It kind of felt like a home away from home, in fact! He happily returned to his training again. He was walking a bit ahead the rest of the group, working on his chakra exercise. All the while he worked, and after all that, he was able to get it to 80 maximum speed, without meditating... Meaning if he did meditate, it would be even more! Naruto was excited, and couldn't wait until his next meditating chance.

"Okay, it's almost sunset. I suggest we set up camp."

They set up camp, ate the food from their packs, and silently stared for a while.

"So! Who's going to take the first watch?" Sakura said, trying to start a conversation.

Silence.

"I'll do it." Naruto said.

"Well, that settles it. Good night all." Kakashi said and hit the hay, soon followed by Sasuke. Sakura, too, went to bed, but simply stared awake. It had been the most boring mission so far? And yet, nothing had changed... Absolutely nothing... Except, well, Naruto acting all weird... But that didn't matter, did it? Of course not!... But then, why was this mission so boring... Turning to lie on her side, Sakura stared at Naruto, who was sitting, holding something in his hand. There was a full moon outside, and so there was a lot of light. Naurto's golden hair caught the moonlight perfectly and glistened. She could only see his left side of his face, but it was frowning, apparently concentrating on something. But even in that concentration, his eyes seemed to dance with determination and joy... A sort of welcoming joy that seemed to comfort her by just looking at it. A slight breeze now came, and his hair danced in the wind. It blew his scent to her, and she could faintly smell it. Closing her eyes, she gently inhaled his soothing scent. It felt so great...

Sleep slowly came over her. A warm hand was now touching, her shoulder, and her eyes went open suddenly.

"Sakura... You seem to be having a fever. You're warm, and your face is red all over." Naruto quietly said.

Red? I'm... I'm blushing? I'm warm all over? He better be right... er, MUST be right... I-I'm having a fever... "Yeah, I think so..." Although she felt fine.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now. You have to hold on until we get to the next town, which is still two days away. But in the mean time, take my blanket."

"I-I really don't think that's --"
"We can't take any chances. We are on a C class mission, and if you are sick, the team will suffer. If it helps, don't think of it as a token of kindness – because it's not. It is merely for the sake of the misison." He was off.

Oh, God... I don't want to hurt his feelings, but

INNER SAKURA: Hurt his feelings? What'd you do at the dance, then?

That was only because Ino said...

INNER SAKURA: Said what? Do it? So you did?

Right when Sakura was about to lose the battle to her inner self, Naruto came and gave her the blankets.

Sakura was really, really sleepy by now, and she didn't argue. She simply kept it on top of her, trying to maintain her distance from 'the Naruto blanket.' But soon enough, she was cuddled in its "comfy-ness" and she softly purred with the warmth it gave her.

Naruto went back to meditation. This way, his acute senses could have his full concentration. They would be protected from any person.

After his shift was over, Kakashi came and Naruto went and lay down on the ground. Kakashi looked at him: he was lying down on the bare forest floor, shivering a bit. Kakashi sighed and shook his head. What could he do? He couldn't give Naruto his blanket, as Naruto would then complain that it was a training exercise, or that he was manly enough to take the cold. But he couldn't leave him like that... He went and gave Naruto his blanket; after all, he wouldn't be using it for a while.

That morning, Sakura woke up; she was half conscious and still lying down. Lying in the warmth of this strange, soft blanket that was so comforting, she snuggled a bit further inside. It was so great – warm, soft, and it smelled like Naruto... NARUTO? Immediately, she got up, remembering what had happened the previous night before she fell asleep.

She gave Naruto his blanket back.

"Thanks for letting me use it, Naruto... It was really comfortable. "

"No problem." he said and smiled. He quietly thanked Kakashi.

It surprised Kakashi – not trying to be 'macho' was highly out of character for Naruto... Perhaps he had changed after the dance – Kakashi had suspected as much, as he knew Naruto's type, and Kakashi realized soon enough the real Naruto would come out... He just didn't think it'd be so soon.

They continued walking for a bit.

Sakura simply stared at Naruto, who was still doing some strange hand exercise. What on earth is he trying? Its the same thing he did yesterday... "Say, um, Naruto?"

Naruto turned around. "Sakura? Did you call me?"

"Yeah, um, I was wondering, what are you doing?"

"Oh, well, you see..." Naruto explained his exercise and his routine for improving himself. When he was finished, he asked, "What do you think?"

"It's... Good!"

He smiled and continued his exercise.

His routine had turned out to be quite complex... Meditation, figuring out weaknesses, and the routine form improving his problems. She thought about this... He isn't just some guy who fools around... He really, really tries hard to improve... And the people who insult him are only preventing him... And yet, he tries even harder to overcome... All of a sudden, she felt extremely guilty... All the times she had teased him, hurt him, and mocked him... All those times she realized how he must have felt. She thought about how anyone else would have given up... She thought about how he was always so happy, so determined, and so vibrant... and true to himself.

She closed her eyes to stop the tears... But insider her head, the picture of Naruto came... His soft skin... His spiky golden hair dancing... His carefree eyes, determined in his dream, and yet offering comfort to anyone and everyone. She couldn't help but cry, just barely, but the tears came.

Naruto... I'm so sorry...

A day later...

"Daydreaming, Sakura?"

"Huh?" she suddenly snapped back to reality. " Sasuke-kun?"

"Daydreaming?"

"I-I'm not..."

"You were staring at Naruto and smiling... If you're going to do the night watch, do it properly." and he left.

She blushed horribly. She had been thinking about Naruto... Smiling? She didn't know... But she knew she probably had been... which only made her blush more. She and Naruto were friends now... and just friends... well, may be not friends (okay, fine, not even close to friends), but their relationship had improved. Naruto, too, had noted the change in Sakura's attitude towards him and acted more open to her about personal matters... She looked at him sleeping... She couldn't but smile. He seemed so peaceful, without the daily troubles, without any worries.

They reached the farm.

"Ah, you must be the ninjas."

Kakashi nodded. "Yes. So, you're having thieves?"

The farmer nodded. "Everyday I only have five sixths of my regular stock..."

Kakashi nodded. They set up the trap and planned for the arrival.

That night, they all took their places. Kakashi would direct and watch over, in case things got out of hand; Sakura would use genjutsu to make it seem as if the field was plenty with harvest; Sasuke and Naruto would bag and finish off the guys.

It turned out the robbers were ordinary thugs, just as Kakashi had said.

Walking in, they wanted to take the food; instantly, Sakura released the genjutsu and revealed Naruto and Sasuke. Meanwhile, Sakura went back to finish setting up her trap – Naruto and Sasuke's job was to first stall them, and finally lead them to the trap.

There were about ten guys total. Naruto began by using his chakra exercise – only this time, he rammed the ball into the ground; sure, the chakra was held together pretty loosely, but it served the purpose. A huge amount of dust was thrown into the air, and the robbers couldn't see. Immediately, they retreated behind. But Sasuke caught them with kunais and held them down. When they had finally gotten themselves loose, the robbers ran as fast as they could behind, only to complete the final part of the plan – right into Sakura's net. Using knives and other blades, they cut themselves free, but Sasuke came and threw kunais at three of them; they dodged, and now, it was one on ten. A shadow clone of Naruto came and together, the two took the thugs on. Then, from behind, five more Naruto's came and knocked the guys out from behind. Sasuke tied them all up and brought Kakashi... All this had happened in a mere ten minutes, and Sakura watched Naruto and Sasuke go at it... Sasuke was pretty much the same – he was good! But Naruto had changed immensely. Instead of yelling out, he came from behind, used the element of surprise, and was the true key in this mission. His attitude had completely changed, and now, his objective was to complete the mission, like a true shinobi.

"Good job Sasuke, Sakura. Great job, Naruto. It seems you've learned to work as a team." Kakashi said looking at his pupils with pride.

"Heh." Sasuke said smiling. "Looks like you've caught up – ten all."

Naruto, too, was happy. It seemed his training was paying off.

"You bet." Naruto had saved Sasuke from an ambush with his shadow clones. Going back to Konoha, they kept the same system of night watches. On the third day, just five hours' walk away from Konoha, they had stopped to camp. It was Naruto's shift, and, as usual, he sat in his meditation pose to increase the acuteness of his senses. There was something – just barely, but something was off. He woke Kakashi alone to verify.

"Yes, just barely. It seems they layered it, putting a little more each time, so you wouldn't detect it. It's genjutsu all right. Let's wake the others."

"So what's the plan?"

"Well, we don't know who they are. For all we know they could be our own shinobi, not knowing who we were. We have no choice but to go closer in case of friendly fire. Let's go." Kakashi tweaked the enemies genjutsu so they could see through it, but the enemy wouldn't realized. They saw to shinobi in black and some white.

"They've surrounded themselves with genjutsu... We can't tell who they are... But we know they're chuunin rank at least."

"We took Zabuza, we can take them."

"No" Kakashi said. "If they are our men, it will be hazardous."

"So what do we do?" Naruto asked, frustrated. He hated these kinds of situations. He hated helplessness. It was like his childhood all over again.

"We go back and ask for help."

Damn... "Wait. What if I go, revealing my forehead protector. You guys watch over in case."

"It'll be too obvious. What would a genin be doing this far from Konoha, by himself, at night. No way."

"What if you go?"Kakashi's eye twinkled. Hey, it's been a while. Yes, Naruto had a way of persuading people. "All right. But if anything gets out of hand, I want Sasuke to go back and call for help." He saw the look in Sasuke's eye. "I say this not because I think you are the weakest, but because I know you are the fastest." With that, he descended. "Who are you, and what are you doing this far into Fire Territory."

One of them answered. "Who are you to interrogate us.""I am a Leaf shinobi. I have all authority to do so. Now, answer my question."

"We are leaf ANBU members."

Kakashi stood about twenty feet away from the two, and so neither could see the other very well. Suddenly, he said, "Is it #56 and 78?"

"Kakashi?" the other replied.

Kakashi sighed. "It's all right." With that, they all walked back together. "So, this is your team, eh, Kakashi. Long time no see.""Hmmm... An Uchiha. Judging by the pink hair, a Haruno... And this... This would be the kid, eh?"Naruto looked down. He didn't have a name... He never did. He was always, the kid, or him, or it... It hurt, it always did. And it hurt now, just as much as before. Suddenly, Naruto heard them calling him."Hey, kid, come here." When Naruto approached him, the man took him away to an isolated place. "Now listen. I know chakra control is difficult, but I just want you to use this move. I'll show it to you, but I'll only show you once, got it? So you gotta learn it. And also, you will never use this in front of anyone... Got it?"

"Yes, Sir." Naruto said.

Today, my debt is repaid. So, Yondaime-sama, I will take back what is rightfully mine after this. "All right then. Watch the hand seals carefully..." The two returned. "So, what did you do with him?" Kakashi asked the man in private. "Did you teach it to him?"

"Yes."

"God damn it --"

"You have no authority over my actions, Kakashi. As his sensei, you have certain rights – none of which I trespassed over. I did not hurt him, I did not show any suggestive themes to him, and I did not reveal any information to him which might cause future pain. Beyond this, you have no right to act... Not like you could." He added the last part. "I had a debt. I am a free man from this day forth. And no one, not you, not the hokage, could've stopped me from my liberty." With that, he and his companion left. So that's why they came... I should've known.

"Sensei, who were they?" Sakura asked.

"Long-term ANBU units... Their particular mission lasted five years. Top secret stealth objective..." Kakashi sighed. "Let's go. I need a break."

Sasuke stared curiously at Naruto, who merely shrugged it off.

I was hoping he would save that for later... Naruto can't contain it at this age... Ugh... Mine... Sandaime-sama's... Anko's... Jiraiya-sama's... And his... Now all debts have been repayed, it's time for Naruto to make it on his own.

Coming back to Konoha, normality returned.

"Sasuke-kun! Do you want to --"

"No. I need to train." If there are people that strong... and that young... then what the hell have I been doing all this time... Brother... is probably stronger... Shit...

"We can train together!"

He glared at her. "I train alone."

"But... I won't be a burden! Not like --"

"Naruto? To me, you're the equal to Naruto. In fact, you're worse than Naruto... And in case you don't know, it was Naruto who beat the masked kid."

"... Y-You're just being modest, Sasuke-kun!"

He stared at her and left.

"S-Sasuke-kun?" Naruto... You...

"Okay, team... The Chuunin exams are coming up. If you want to participate, simply take one of these forms. Well, that's it."

Naruto grabbed one first, soon followed by Sasuke. The two looked at Sakura.

"Sakura-chan?"

"Huh? Oh, um, right... I just, zoned out there for a minute. Heh." and she quickly got one. O boy... She left Sasuke alone that day.

Naruto, too, was rather busy – the next step to his dream had just come... From academy, to genin... Now, it was time for from genin to chuunin. He was busy training when suddenly, Sakura came to him.

"Naruto? Can I talk to you for a minute?" Why the hell was she doing this?

"Sure Sakura."

Naruto could never understand her... Forget make her feel better. "Are you signing up for the Chuunin exam?"

"Of course. It's the only way I can become hokage..."

"R-Right..."

A silence followed. "Are you afraid?" Naruto suddenly asked.

Her face paled. He would go tell Sasuke that she was afraid... And that would be the end for her. That was it. "N-NO!" she quickly said. "No, I'm not afraid, or anything... Just... I was just wondering why you were signing... People have different reasons, you know."

Naruto shook his head. "But there should only be one reason... And it should be to become chuunin... Not because you're forced to... Not to show someone you're competent..." he lightly said.

Sakura looked at him. He couldn't... Is he talking about me and Sasuke? There's no way Naruto's sophisticated or even smart enough to say it that lightly... If he actually realized it, he'd be blunt about it.

"There's nothing wrong with believing you're not ready, you know... You can always train, come back confident in your abilities, and do better... Instead of taking it, shaking and afraid, torture yourself, all to achieve some shallow goal... You should only do it if you really want to... not for someone else. "

"But you risk your life for others in every mission."

"Only because I want to risk my life; only because I care enough about those people... Not because I'm forced to."

Another uncomfortable silence followed.

"Th-Thanks, Naruto."

"No problem! So, are you going to take it?"

"Yeah... I think so..."

"Good." he smiled and went back to training.

Yes, he was stupid, loud-mouthed, and a complete moron at times, but he did have his moments. Sakura looked at him... He gave her a feeling... It was the kind of feeling no one else had ever given her before... It was... surprisingly, nice; she liked it. Sort of an able to fool around, but come to serious matters as well, welcoming kind of feeling. She was able to tell more to Naruto than many others... Including her parents, at times. She looked at him, training hard, practicing taijutsu movements in the field... But as she looked at him, everything else disappeared. All she could see was he, moving around, sweat coming down his smiling face, and his body working hard. She looked at him and smiled. Am I one of those people who you'd risk your life for?

So ends another chapter. Yay! Upcoming chapter: Jiraiya enters the scene!