Author: this is fun. It appears this will be a fairly short story for me. I'm seeing at most 15 chapters. Yay! And, by the way, thank you soooo much for reviewing. Reviews make a happy author, and a happy author writes more. Smack me for any OOC-ness. I try, I really do.

Disclaimer: If Naruto belonged to me, I wouldn't be writing this, now would I?

"Sasuke! Are you okay?" Kumori asked, eyes disturbed.

Sasuke nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. "Of course."

Kumori smiled a little at his response. That was definitly Sasuke.

Sakura was not so ready to back down. "You had us(meaning herself and Kumori; Kakashi had continued to read his book and had merely blown off their concerns with a shrug and a "he'll be fine") worrying about you! What did he do to you?"

"...nothing I objected to."

Kakashi noted how vauge that answer is and snickered inwardly, and idly turned the page in his book.

"Like what?" Sakura pressed, undetered.

"He showed me around the city. He was...gentle towards me."

The inner Kakashi was laughing. He knew exactly what Sasuke was saying; afterall, a ninja had to look underneath the underneath and Sasuke's words had so many double meanings that he was being honest and lying at the same time.

Sakura frowned, skeptical.

Sasuke shrugged.

"So, Kakashi. Is he the one that you were ordered to look for?"

Kakashi nodded. "I've managed to put together very little information, though. For a man who travels a lot and is well-known by reputation, his past before he became a guide-fo-hire is mostly unknown. Very strange." Kakashi looked at Sasuke. "Do you have anything?"

"He knew me. He knew my first name, even though I had not told him. When I gave him my full name, he seemed to recognize that as well. I'm not well known outside the ninja, though. I guess he could have picked up my name from when he was guiding other shinobi, but I doubt it. His name is Kawao. He would not give me a surname. He said he didn't have one, since he was 'found'. He wouldn't respond to my questions after that. He's very close-mouthed." Kakashi nodded slightly. That was all he had managed to glean as well. He had a hint of where he might have been 'found', but he wanted to check something.

"I've been asked to deliver your mission to you three. After that, I'm leaving."

Sasuke nodded and was handed a scroll by Kakashi.

"The mission is explained in there. It's not too difficult. Good luck."

Kakashi stood and walked out the door.

Sasuke looked at the two kunoichi, opened the scroll, and the three of them began to read.

---

Kakashi had avoided the fjord for a long time now. It still brought painful memories. Memories of how he had failed. He would not allow himself to be overwhelmed, though, not this time. He traced the horizon with his eyes, and then turned and followed the waters, searching, and hoping.

---

The village wasn't used to visitors, most certainly not mysterious, mildly attractive ones. They offered him what they could, pressing him for news of the world outside their small abode. The stranger humored them, and told them what he could, while also drawing out information about their past, about those who lived here, of the coming and going of the seasons; everything that would be safe, and very normal topics of conversation. He asked about the current generation of young adults, and it was then that he hit a small snag.

"Most of them stay in this village, raise families here, die here. That's the way things are. Every now and then, though, we have a restless one. My cousin twice removed was that way. But there was one in this group; he was always odd, though, so we weren't surprised."

"Oh? Who might this be? I might have met him..."

"Really? It'd be so nice to hear news of that little demon." Those present laughed slightly. "Always making trouble, he was; always very strange and headstrong. He was kind, though, and always willing to help. He also was pretty sociable; I think he had friends from the elders to the children."

"A name?"

"Oh, we don't know what his name was. He said he couldn't remember, and whenever he tried he would always become dizzy and sick for a few moments. We named him Kawao, since he came from the river. He seemed to take to the name."

"I see...I think I have met him before..." Things were fitting too neatly in place for it to be a coincidence.

"Really? You must give me some news!" a young girl cried and pushed to the front, pleading eyes fixing on the one visible eye of the traveler.

Kakashi smiled faintly, and told a brief, very edited version of what he knew.

He stayed for the night and left the next morning. The village returned to its normal, sleepy ways, the brief visitor remembered only faintly for the news he had brought.

---

Tsunade heard a sharp knock on her door, and she looked up from the latest pile of paperwork.

"Come in."

Kakashi entered, looking sad and pleased at the same time.

"You're done your mission?"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama."

"And?"

There was a long, thoughtful pause.

"The Kyuubi is not dead."

Tsunade stared and was about to say something when Kakashi cut in,

"And neither is his bearer."

Tsunade's mouth closed.

"So...?"

"Uzumaki Naruto is still alive. However, he remembers nothing of the person he was." There was a pause, and when Kakashi spoke again, a note of wry amusement was tinging his voice, "And it seems his obsession with Sasuke had not died down."

"Great. Another one after Uchiha," Tsunade growled at the parchment. What could they feasibly do in this situation? It would be dangerous to try and reawaken Naruto's memories, if he still had any vestiges at all. She didn't want to deal with an irate Kyuubi if she pushed too hard. She didn't know how the village would react if he was accepted back into their ranks; Naruto had been mistrusted even when he was young; how would the people feel now that the Kyuubi and its bearer seemed to be back from the dead?

"Shit," Tsunade breathed and put her head in her hands. She took a deep breath and looked back up at Kakashi. "There's very little we can do right now. Keep an eye on him. Report to me if anything seems to change about his situation."

Kakashi raised his single visible eyebrow. "He's going to be here in two weeks' time."

"What?" Tsunade asked, a dangerous growl to her voice, implying that if Kakashi had suggested that to Naruto that she would have him put into a very, very unomfortable position. Most likely mediating the confrontation between Naruto and the townspeople.

"He's signed up to guide a group of merchant to here. I checked up on them; no missing nin or ninja among them. Simply civilians employing a well-known, trustworthy guide."

Tsunade's shoulders slumped. "Very well. Let's see how he reacts when he arrives here. He's been here before, but that was before he met Sasuke. Let's see if that encounter changed anything."

Kakashi nodded and turned to leave.

"Keep a watch on him anyway."

Kakashi paused, then nodded.

"Yes, Hokage-sama."