A/N: Kind of a small break between chapters, but I have finals this week and then Spring Break next week...so unless the weather in San Diego sucks, it'll likely be awhile til chapter 15. Anyway, story is skipping ahead as I mentioned. I'm not 100 percent happy with the chapter, but it's as close to what I wanted as I could get for the moment. When I get the chance when I get back, I'll probably skim through the previous chapters for editing purposes (small stuff, nothing major), so don't be surprised if you look back through the other chapters at some point and notice something different (the "flashback" transitioning is something that I'll probably work on - thanks JA-Japster). Anyway, enjoy...Read & Review...

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CHAPTER 14

"MOVING ON"

As usual, the streets of Konoha were deathly silent. The calm and pleasant atmosphere that filled the night sky was becoming unusually common. The small number of guards patrolling along Konoha's walls and gates had even grown lazy with the lack of action. Not that anyone in the village was complaining. It had been a little over two and a half years since the now famous Chuunin Exam incident with the Hidden Sand and Hidden Sound attempting to destroy Konoha, and the town's inhabitants had only recently begun to put it behind them. Now, though, with peace slowly returning, the village was actually quite boring. The Hokage still received the occasional missions to assign, and the Academy still churned out new classes of Genins. The only problem facing Konoha and its shinobi were the lack of upper level ninja to train them. The numbers of Jounin and even Chuunin level shinobi had been decimated by the Chuunin Exam incident, though their numbers were gradually growing. But Jounin instructors to lead Genin teams were in short supply, as were worthy Jounin and Chuunin to maintain the ranks of ANBU, which despite the brief period of serenity, still suffered regular casualties as a result of their sometimes suicidal missions. The fact that ANBU were still used to patrol the village borders also limited their numbers, as well as irritating those ANBU unlucky enough to be assigned to patrol duty. Generally given to new recruits, guard duty was usually considered as punishment by those appointed to it. Which made the ANBU agent calmly standing atop the western wall something of an anomaly. She had volunteered.

Hidden well by the dark cloak and hood covering her body, the ANBU guard peered out of the narrow eyeholes in the white mask covering her face. Her deep blue eyes sparkled faintly in the light of the full moon as she took a moment to gaze out across the heavens. Without thinking, she reached a gloved hand into the equipment pouch around her waist and removed a freshly polished forehead protector. Aside from a few scratches scarring the center of the plate around the leaf symbol, it looked relatively new and unused. However, the gentle hands holding the object knew better. When her mind had settled, she dashed off in a flash, arriving moments later at the large stone monument at the center of the training grounds. Stepping slowly up to the large face, she scanned through the many names listed until she found it etched near the bottom of the cenotaph.

Zuboshi Takeo.

Kaori rarely went a day without thinking of her lost friend for at least a few seconds. Every time she pulled her ANBU mask over her face, she remembered the teammate she and Kintarou had lost on their mission to Earth Country. Takeo had been a big part of their success, saving Ren and Jana according to the report Tsunade gave them after they had returned. The conversation still echoed in her head as if she'd heard it only yesterday…

"Before you go," Tsunade began. "I thought you'd like to know what Ren and the girl, Jana, had to say last night. According to Ren, he and Takeo encountered three shinobi from the Hidden Stone. The top of the plateau was supposedly the base camp for the Sound nin that were holding Jana and her younger sister. When Takeo and Ren arrived, however, there were no Sound present. For whatever reason, the Stone attacked, but were interrupted when two other shinobi attacked them."

"Other shinobi?" Kintarou questioned.

"Based on the brief description Ren gave, they're likely missing nin…S-class…" Tsunade responded, trying to avoid revealing everything she knew.

"Why would two S-class missing nin attack them?" she asked, flipping her sandy blonde hair behind her ears.

"I don't know," Tsunade answered. "What exactly happened afterwards isn't clear. Takeo used his summoning jutsu, which aside from calling the hawk, created a lot of smoke that hindered Ren's observations."

"Yes, Ren-san mentioned that when he spoke with Kaori after we found him," Kintarou nodded.

"Ah, then the rest you know," Tsunade sighed. "The girl wasn't much help. Jana only remembers being dragged to the top by the Sound nin, and then passing out before waking up while you were carrying her over your shoulder."

Kintarou scratched his head. "I remember that. She nearly clawed my eyes out."

Suppressing a chuckle, Tsunade continued. "When I send out the team to search for the body, I'll make sure to have them look over the area for any additional clues as to the events that took place at that plateau."

She and Kintarou nodded.

"That's all I needed," Tsunade said warmly. "You should head to the ANBU offices."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," they both said in unison.

That day, they had officially entered ANBU, which had been their goal from the start. But with Takeo gone, she and Kintarou had both felt awkward filling out the entry paperwork, as if they had fulfilled their dreams at the expense of his life. When the recovery team sent to retrieve Takeo's body returned empty-handed, it had crushed them. Kintarou took it especially hard, almost as badly as Takeo's own family, blaming himself for failing to retrieve him the first time. Kaori slowly removed one of her gloves and lightly ran her fingers over the first few letters of Takeo's name engraved into the monument. She briefly recalled the funeral services, which were especially uncomfortable…

She marched up the aisle, her sister, Kira, following her up and providing a much-needed shoulder to cry on. She had kept Takeo's forehead protector since that day at the plateau, and was reluctant to give it away as she rested it in front of the photo of her departed friend. Shinji and his dad spent a long time staring at the altar, but neither said much. Takeo's Genin teammates Hitomi and Katai, along with his sensei Hokoji, spent several minutes paying their respects, too. She noticed Kintarou struggle when it was his turn, trying to sound as official as he could while trying to apologize to Keigo and Hakumi. He managed only a few words before Keigo cut him off and took him aside.

"It wasn't your fault, Kintarou," he said calmly. "Takeo gave his life protecting someone and fulfilling his duty for Konoha. There's nothing sad about that, and nothing you need to apologize for. The fact that you tried to find him and bring my son home says a lot about the man you are. You'll make a fine squad commander some day."

Kintarou frowned as he nodded.

"I'm sure Takeo would agree," Keigo half-heartedly smiled.

Ren and Jana, both released from the hospital only a few days prior to the funeral, paid their respects as well. Both hesitantly approached Takeo's family, trying to convey the gratitude they had for what the boy had done. She heard the four of them share several kind words. Once everyone had offered their condolences, the crowd began to disperse. Standing alone atop the Hokage tower, the sun slowly peeking out from the gathering clouds, she, Kintarou, and Takeo's parents all took turns gathering up the flowers that had been presented, before quietly turning to leave. Hakumi, with a sad smile on her face, took her hand and placed Takeo's forehead protector in it. She held back her tears, trying to return it. Keigo and Hakumi simply shook their heads.

"We have enough things to remind us of Takeo," Hakumi said softly. "You should take this…"

She again tried to give it back, but relented after Keigo wrapped an arm around his wife and both of them began to leave. She tightened her grip around the now precious memento, clutching it to her chest.

And Kaori never let it go. Through every mission and every training session, she kept the treasured keepsake with her. Standing back up, the kunoichi slid her glove back on and raised her mask slightly so she could wipe the single drop forming in the corner of her eye. With a final glimpse of the monument, where Takeo's name was enshrined with the rest of Konoha's heroes who were killed in action, she dashed off into the night to continue her patrol.

It had been two years since the two had returned from their mission to Earth Country, and so much had changed in that time. They had moved on after Takeo's death, trying to focus on what was in front of them. She and Kintarou were both ANBU agents. While she was content with guard duty and the occasional reconnaissance mission, Kintarou, on the other hand, had thrown himself into every mission he could handle. Assassination, recovery, intelligence…whatever the mission entailed, Kintarou was willing to take it on. Because of that, the two of them only worked together on missions maybe once or twice a month. Outside of their ANBU obligations, they would pass each other often as they visited with Takeo's parents or stopped by Ren's home to visit with him or Jana. Shinji, who had taken them both in as his new "brother" and "sister", often hung out with the two of them when he wasn't busy with his team. Having graduated from the academy a year earlier, Shinji was quickly becoming one of Konoha's most promising Genin. Keigo had even begun training him in archery and teaching him basic jutsu (after several weeks of begging and pleading). Despite all the grief and sorrow they went through for those first few painful days after returning to Konoha, life continued to move forward. In time, the pain of losing Takeo was replaced by the warmth she and the rest of them felt when they remembered having him around.

A more delicate sense of warmth caressed Kaori's worn body as dawn came and went, the crimson glow of the rising sun erasing the slight chill in the air. Her shift was finally over, and the ANBU kunoichi couldn't have been happier. She motioned briefly at the other ANBU guards in her view, signaling that she was leaving her post. With quiet grace, Kaori leapt from her perch atop the high eastern wall and landed softly on the dew-covered grass below. She raced off toward the Hokage's tower to turn in her patrol shift report and meet briefly with her squad commander, who was scheduled to meet with the Hokage that morning.

Upon entering the building, Kaori lowered the hood over her head, revealing her sandy blonde hair. She had been wearing it much shorter than she did as a Chuunin, though she had kept the two braids hanging from her temples a little longer than the rest of her hair, so that they hung down just below her jaw. With her ANBU animal mask over her face, she found the longer braids easier to tuck away behind her ears. As she moved slowly up the staircase, Kaori deftly tossed aside her cloak, letting it drop in a heap beside the Chuunin standing guard outside the ANBU office. Kaori's slender and curvy figure hadn't changed much in the past few years, though the grind of ANBU life left her body leaner and her muscles more toned. Even with her face hidden, she still managed to take the breath away from most of the men she passed, including the stumbling guard who picked up her cloak. Ignoring his glances, she hurried on up until she encountered her squad commander. Once she handed him her report, she bowed slightly and hurried back to the ANBU office.

Inside, she removed her mask and the small katana from her back, placing both into a medium-sized backpack. Stepping into a secluded changing area, Kaori quickly changed out of her official ANBU uniform, dropping most of the gear into the pack on top of her mask and katana. Standing in a short-sleeved black fishnet top and standard dark blue pants that stopped just above her knees, Kaori grabbed her old, comfortable sleeveless robe and slipped the white garment on over the fishnet. She dusted off her black sandal boots and gathered her pack, sliding the straps over her shoulder. Before the Chuunin guard at the door could respond, Kaori dashed out of the tower almost as fast as she had entered.

Back among the crisp and clear morning air, Kaori calmly walked off, heading down towards the center of the village to keep an appointment. She passed a few fellow shinobi, waving and smiling politely at those she knew. When she reached the tiny corner shop nestled in the middle of town, she tapped her fingers gently against the glass window framed into the door. Seconds later, a bright inviting smile greeted her as the door swung open.

"Kaori-chan!"

"Hi, Jana-chan," Kaori smiled.

Kaori and Jana had grown pretty close since the mission to Earth Country had ended. Granted, Kaori was the only girl Jana knew in Konoha for a long time. But nevertheless, the two young women had gotten to know each other very well over the last two years.

"Dad is out in the garden, I think," Jana said kindly, brushing her long, platinum blonde locks away from her face.

"He usually is," Kaori replied. "Business must be booming again, huh?"

"So says our best customer," Jana winked.

Kaori chuckled as she entered the shop, inhaling the fragrant aromas filling the small apothecary. Several months after Ren and Jana were brought to Konoha, Ren had asked Tsunade about opening an herb shop, quickly recapping his days as a merchant. The medical specialist that she is, Tsunade had little trouble allowing Ren to have his business. After all, having an herbalist nearby wasn't something she could refuse. When the shop finally opened, Kaori and several of the other medical nins kept Ren and Jana busy filling orders. Every time Kaori stopped by, it seemed like the old man was busier than before.

"If he's really that busy, maybe I should come back," Kaori offered, browsing at some of the ointments lining the shelves.

"Please," Jana scoffed. "Dad wouldn't forgive me if I let you leave without saying hello. Besides, didn't you have an appointment with him anyway?"

"Yes," Kaori nodded. "But it's not that important."

"What's not that important?"

Walking in from the back door, Ren clapped his soiled hands together several times, beating the dirt from them. Kaori turned and smiled at the older man. It was still hard to believe this cheerful man was the same person they had rescued in Earth Country.

"Ah, nothing Ren-san," Kaori grinned.

"Good," Ren smiled back. "I take it you're here about your order."

Kaori nodded. "If it's not too much trouble, I was hoping to take it today. I have a mission in two days."

"Of course," Ren said politely. "I can have it ready in an hour or so, if that's okay?"

"That would be perfect," Kaori replied.

"Jana, maybe you should bring some tea while Kaori-san waits," Ren suggested as he turned to leave.

"Right," she responded.

Entering their small apartment upstairs, Jana hurriedly brewed some tea and then ran back down. Setting the wooden tray on top of the long display counter, Jana poured a cup for Kaori and herself. The two girls chatted for a few minutes, while Ren noisily worked in the back.

"Where's Kintarou today?" Jana asked as she took another sip.

"Hm? Oh, he's out on a mission," Kaori answered. "He should be back any day, though."

"That guy," Jana snickered. "Always off on something. Has he ever spent one day at home?"

Kaori laughed. "Not in a long time."

The two shared a grin before turning their eyes back towards their cups.

"So, it's been about two years, right?" Jana quietly asked.

Kaori paused before slowly nodding. "Yeah."

"Are you doing the same thing you did last year? I mean with the ceremony or whatever that Keigo-san did?"

"Probably," Kaori shrugged.

She stared into the small pool of tea remaining in her cup.

"You think it's okay if we come?" Jana inquired.

"I'm sure Keigo-san and Hakumi-san would be happy to have you there," Kaori smiled. "As would I."

"Thanks," Jana replied. "I…well, Dad and I both enjoy hearing you talk about Takeo. Dad especially…"

"Yeah…I'd imagine," Kaori nodded.

"I wish I could have met him," Jana smiled. "Or at least said thank you before…you know."

"You would have liked him, I'm sure," Kaori giggled. "He could get on your nerves sometimes, but when you needed him, he was there."

Kaori shook her head to put a stop to the impulsive tears forming in her eyes. Jana made a move to console her, but a loud, familiar voice interrupted.

"Yo, Jana-san! Nee-san!"

Kaori sighed as she and Jana turned and greeted the blonde-haired boy that entered the store. Shinji had grown out of his stocky frame, though the thirteen year-old still had a bit of baby fat on his slightly chubby cheeks.

"Hey, Shinji-kun," Kaori smiled.

"Yo, brat!" Jana teased.

"Hmph," Shinji sneered at Jana's remark. "I guess maybe I shouldn't tell you my exciting news."

"Fine by me," Jana grinned.

"What is it?" Kaori asked, politely elbowing Jana in her side.

"I'm leaving on a mission," Shinji answered excitedly. "A C-rank one."

"That's great," Kaori nodded.

"Yeah," Shinji smiled. "I just wanted to stop by and tell you. I'm not sure if we'll make it back in time for the ceremony tomorrow, so…you know."

"Got it," Kaori assured him. "Keigo-san and Hakumi-san already know, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then don't worry about it," Kaori told him, messing up his neatly combed hair. "Takeo-kun would understand."

Shinji quickly fixed his hair before silently thinking to himself. "Right. Well, I should probably get going. Hideo-sensei wants us to meet at the gates at nine."

"Good luck," Jana said, smiling apologetically for her earlier remark.

"Yeah," Kaori echoed.

The plucky Genin hurried out of the shop, leaving the two girls alone again.

"Hard to believe he's one of the more promising Genin," Kaori chuckled. "Wouldn't have thought so after the first few times I met him."

"Things change," Jana shrugged, finishing the last of her tea.

"Yeah," Kaori agreed, her thoughts beginning to wander as she spotted Ren returning with her order. "I suppose they do."