A/N: Quick chapter...hope it doesn't come across as rushed as it somehow felt. Anyway, enjoy.

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CHAPTER 16

"REUNION"

"Noppo?"

The other two ANBU turned towards their awestruck captain as he repeated the name.

"Who?" the female in the rabbit-shaped mask asked.

"Captain, do you know him?" the shorter male shinobi inquired, keeping a sharp eye on the man through his tiger-styled mask.

The imposing ANBU captain again said nothing as he focused on the man before him.

"Sir?" the ANBU kunoichi said as she nudged him.

"Oh, ah…you two…secure the area," he responded, finally snapping out of his daze and picking up his katana. "I would like to speak with him in private for a moment."

"Understood, sir."

Addressing the man carrying Shinji, the ANBU captain adjusted his bear mask. "You can leave him with "Tiger". He's a medical specialist."

The other shinobi carefully laid the injured Genin on the ground beside his standing teammates, and then calmly began walking beside the ANBU captain. Without a word, the two disappeared into the shadows of the forest.

"Right," the female ANBU said soon after. "Tiger, tend to the boy. Hideo-san, could you tell me what happened."

Grimacing slightly as he lowered himself onto an overturned log, Hideo nodded. "My team and I were dispatched on a C-rank mission. Several men had apparently kidnapped a boy from a nearby village. We tracked them to the forest around this area. A pair of them had spotted our fire, and soon all six were here. Our plan to lure them out was successful, but before we could act, a missing Cloud nin attacked them and turned on us."

"Did he mention why?"

"No," Hideo sighed. "As ashamed as I am to admit it, that's all I know. He managed to knock me out for a while."

"What about you two?" the ANBU woman asked, pointing at Riku and Hiroko.

The two Genin were watching worryingly as the male ANBU checked over their injured teammate. Shinji looked pale, and after the medic had removed the boy's shirt, both Hiroko and Riku recoiled at the discoloration and swelling marring his left side.

"He's in good hands," the kunoichi said as she placed a gloved hand on Hiroko's head. "I need you two to tell me what happened."

Noticing Hiroko's distant gaze, Riku turned and frowned. "After Hideo-sensei was subdued, the man turned on us. Shinji charged at him, which wasn't exactly smart, and he was…well, you can see…"

"And what about you?" she questioned, turning her masked face towards his motionless arm.

"Oh, um, I took a hit to my shoulder," Riku answered. "Nothing too serious."

"Tiger will look at it once he's finished with your friend," the female ANBU responded. "If you would please continue and—"

"He saved us," Hiroko suddenly spoke, turning and intently eyeing the woman. "After Shinji and Riku were attacked, the Cloud ninja tried to attack me, but he stopped him. He fought him and beat him. He even helped us with Hideo-sensei after he regained consciousness."

"Did he say anything? The shinobi who helped you?" the ANBU woman asked. "Where he was from, what he was doing in Fire Country?"

"No," Hiroko replied, shaking her head.

"That Cloud ninja seemed like he might have known him," Riku offered. "By the way he talked to him, I mean."

"I see," the kunoichi nodded.

"All set," the other ANBU announced as he rose to his feet. "There's nothing more I can do here. We should get him back to Konoha and to the hospital. He's stable at the moment, but I can't treat any internal injuries out here without confirming a diagnosis."

"But he's okay?" Hiroko nervously inquired.

"He should be fine," he assured her.

"That's a relief," Riku sighed as he and Hiroko smiled briefly at one another.

"Right. Tiger, check over this one's arm. I'm going to inform the captain."

"Got it."

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Beneath the overhanging branches of the forest's towering trees, the ANBU captain and the other shinobi stood, partially veiled in the darkness created by the dense canopy. The two were silent; the taller ANBU occasionally glanced over at the other shinobi, looking him over. The build was the same; lean and toned, though he looked more tanned than he remembered. Same black pants, though they were more form fitting and slightly shorter. A small bit of his shin was visible between the bottom of each leg and the bandaging wrapped around his calves and ankles. Even the sandals were the same: traditional Konoha-style black. As the shinobi scratched his arm, the ANBU eyed the familiar looking black shirt hugging the man's chest beneath his dark blue jacket. Gazing at his face, the ANBU noticed the brown eyes looking back at him from beneath the long wavy strands of brown hair tussled atop the shinobi's head. His hair was a little longer, but the same; the eyes, too, were identical, though they appeared to have dulled a bit from the ones he remembered. The only foreign characteristic about the man was the finger-length scar that curled around the lower portion of his right eye and up to the bridge of his nose. Tired of arguing with himself in his own mind, the ANBU finally broke the silence.

"Takeo?'

"Yeah?"

The ANBU slowly turned and moved within inches of the shinobi. "As I am sure you are aware, ANBU are trained in many forms of interrogation. Zuboshi Takeo was declared dead two years ago. What proof do you have that you and he are one in the same?"

Folding his arms across his unzipped jacket, the man sighed. "What do you want to know, Kintarou?"

Startled, the ANBU lifted the mask from his face, resting it on top of his thick black hair. He scratched at the stubble bearding his cheeks and chin.

"Parents' names?"

"Keigo and Hakumi."

"My parents?"

"Never met your mom. Kenta, your dad, died when you were young."

Kintarou frowned. "Our last mission?"

"A-rank. Special field examination for ANBU applications…looks like you passed."

"Mission details?" Kintarou countered.

"Escorting Ren-san from Earth Country back to Konoha. Several Sound nin had kidnapped his daughters and laid a trap for us. We fought them until Ren took off. I followed him while you and Kaori stayed behind."

"Who is Kaori?"

"Oi, Kintarou."

"Please answer the question."

The shinobi sighed. "Hirashi Kaori. Our teammate on the mission and several others before that. Really pretty; blonde hair, blue eyes…you called her a "goddess" when we first teamed together during the Chuunin Exams, then after she tricked us into working at her family's restaurant, you called her a—"

"Enough," Kintarou said sternly as his face flushed.

The ANBU scowled slightly as he stepped even closer. A bright, wide grin spread across his face as he wrapped a large arm around the shinobi's neck.

"It really is you!"

"K-Kintarou," Takeo choked out, trying to free himself.

Grabbing Kintarou's wrist, Takeo swung the leg nearest to Kintarou forward. With a quick shove to Kintarou's backside, Takeo managed to push the burly ANBU off of his head and into the ground as his leg swept back, tripping him. A mouthful of dirt and leaves wasn't enough to deter Kintarou, who hopped to his feet. The two former teammates eyed one another, again stuck in a moment of stillness. Neither of them had any desire to deal with the answers to the obvious questions.

"So, are you okay?" Kintarou said slowly. "I mean from whatever happened back there."

"Yeah," Takeo nodded. "Nothing too important."

"Is your leg okay?" Kintarou asked as he eyed the scorched line of material stained with blood on Takeo's thigh.

"I've had worse," he replied. "Give me a day or two and it should heal fine."

"Great."

"Yeah."

Stuck in another moment void of conversation, the two spent several uncomfortable minutes reliving memories from their brief history as teammates. Both men feigned smiles and forced out a laugh or two at the funnier ones. Eventually, when they had run out of topics to distract them, Kintarou slipped back against the base of the tree behind him and slid down to the ground. Stretching out his legs, the ANBU shinobi shook his head.

"As awkward as this is, you do realize how everyone in Konoha will react to the news, do you not?" he asked, his voice growing more solemn.

Takeo sighed, his eyes wandering elsewhere. "I'm not an idiot."

"You'll forgive me if I disagree," Kintarou replied. "It's been two years, Takeo. If you were alive and okay, why would you not return home? To put Keigo-sama and Hakumi-san through that, having to give you up for dead, and make them and those of us that know you suffer through a memorial service…that is exactly what an idiot would do."

"Shut up!" Takeo snapped. "Do you honestly think I would put my family through something like that? If I'd had my way, I'd have been right along side you and Kaori on the trip home after saving Ren-san. I'd probably be in ANBU right now and off doing some mission instead of fighting off another missing nin."

"Another?"

"The point is that I couldn't go back to Konoha," Takeo said, practically shouting. "I didn't have a choice. It was…nothing…never mind…."

"What?" Kintarou asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing," Takeo coldly replied, turning away. "It's none of your concern."

"As a friend and teammate, I believe it is my concern," Kintarou responded.

"Former teammate," Takeo quietly corrected. "The fancy mask on your head says you've moved up a bit, Captain."

Kintarou paused, flinching at the sting of guilt pinching his gut. "Regardless, I want to know what happened. And if you cannot or will not talk to me, you know that Hokage-sama will ask you the same questions. And Keigo-sama. And Hakumi-san, Kaori-san, Shinji-kun—"

"I get it," Takeo retorted. "If and when the time comes, and they do ask, I'll tell them the same thing I'm telling you now. I was doing my job."

"What does that mean?" Kintarou questioned, rising to his feet.

"Exactly what it sounds like," Takeo callously answered. "And I really don't want to talk about it anymore."

Kintarou frowned, lowering the mask back over his face. "As you wish. We're heading back to Konoha immediately. Shinji-kun's team needs medical attention, and we have a mission report to deliver. You can come with us."

"I'll be fine on my own," Takeo replied, his expression and tone softening slightly.

"Let me rephrase that," Kintarou quickly barked. "Zuboshi Takeo, as captain of ANBU cell seventeen, I am ordering you to accompany us to Konoha and to see the Godaime Hokage, Tsunade-sama. If you fail to comply with this request, we will take you back by force."

Looking unhappily up towards the early evening sky, Takeo sighed. "Always giving me orders…"

"And you still never listen to a thing I say," Kintarou replied, his slight smile hidden behind his mask. "Oh, here."

Takeo's hand instinctively reached up and snagged the roll of bandaging Kintarou had tossed. "I told you I'm fine."

"With Shinji and Hideo-sensei injured, we have to walk back to the village. The last thing we need is to have to drag you along as well."

"Fine…"

Hurriedly tending to the wound on his leg, Takeo tossed the few inches that remained of the roll back at Kintarou, who calmly placed it back into his equipment pouch. Having settled that, the two turned and began heading back towards the clearing. A few yards outside of the area, the female ANBU agent caught up with them and briefly informed Kintarou of what she had learned.

"I see," he nodded. "The kidnappers and the missing nin are all incapacitated at the moment, correct?"

"Yes, sir," the kunoichi replied.

"Has the boy that was taken been recovered?" Kintarou asked.

"Hideo-san believes he knows where their camp is, so it shouldn't be too hard to retrieve him," she answered.

Her captain nodded. "Has Shinji been treated?"

"Yes, sir. Tiger stabilized most of the more serious injuries, however he advised that we hurry back to Konoha and take the boy to the hospital."

"Right," Kintarou agreed. "With seven criminals here, we cannot leave them unguarded. Therefore, we will split up. You and Tiger will stay here and secure the kidnappers and the missing nin. Send up a message flare and wait for backup before attempting to rescue the boy from the camp. If these are indeed all of the kidnappers, he should be safe long enough for you to wait. When we arrive back in Konoha, I'll have Tsunade-sama send a team back here just in case."

"Yes, Captain." The ANBU woman nodded. "But, are you sure you should travel home alone? Hideo-san is still weak and his Genin students won't be of much use either should you be attacked. And I don't believe it's wise to trust this homeless nin."

Kintarou chuckled. "He's not a homeless nin, anymore."

"Y-Yes sir."

The ANBU kunoichi moved over towards their other ANBU squad member and informed him of the plan. Kintarou nodded to Takeo as the two walked over to Hideo and his team. Without a word, Takeo scooped Shinji back up in his arms and began walking. Hiroko and Riku both began to protest, but Kintarou waved them off.

"The six of us will be going back to Konoha together. Tiger and Rabbit will stay behind and secure the Cloud ninja as well as your kidnappers," Kintarou announced, laying a hand on Hiroko's tense shoulder as he noticed her eyeing Shinji. "He is okay. You don't have to worry. Takeo will be especially careful with him."

The girl slowly nodded before abruptly looking up, her narrow eyes suddenly widening. "T-Takeo?"

Kintarou paused. "Yes."

Hiroko glanced at Riku as the group gathered their equipment and prepared to leave. The two Genin watched intently as Takeo carried their teammate's limp form through the dimly lit woods, only pausing every so often to speak with their sensei, who was slowly bringing up the rear. Despite the relative calm of the twilight atmosphere, neither of them were close enough to hear their friend slowly stirring.

"…N-Nii…san…"

Takeo glanced down, but saw the boy's eyes still closed and showing no signs of waking anytime soon. Walking beside him, Kintarou locked his hazel eyes onto him, keeping a close watch as the six marched slowly through the forest, heading for home.