A/N: Chapter 17 has arrived! Translation notes for jutsu will be at the end of the chapter.
Ah, nope, don't own Naruto.
Chapter XVII: The Clouds Gather
A week had passed since Naruto and Kakashi's conversation atop the Stone Face of the Fourth Hokage and Sakura's successful creation of the Byakugō no In. Sakura made sure to channel chakra into the seal at least every other day, just enough that she wouldn't feel much aside from slight fatigue. She kept herself aware of her limits and made sure to let herself recover before adding chakra again. Her collaborative jutsu with Haku improved, as well. Their coordination, between Haku's senbon and Sakura's punches, was a deadly dance after only a couple of practice runs. They even tried a variation of it with both of them using senbon, which turned the target into even more of a pincushion than when Haku performed it on his own.
Naruto's training went from lessons with some spars to spars with some lessons. Konan decided that it was time to apply his Rinnegan abilities practically. At least, as practically as he could with spars. He'd taken some rudimentary kenjutsu lessons from Kakashi, and even gotten some pointers from Yūgao as well. Kakashi offered to lend him an old sword, which he gladly accepted. He didn't want to use the black rods just yet.
Providing him feedback gave Yūgao the idea to have Sasuke and Naruto spar once Naruto's fundamentals were established. At first, he borrowed Kakashi's sword, but later opted to use the black rods instead. They were surprisingly robust, their durability surprising even Naruto. They broke so easily when he created them, yet stood up to even the hardest of swings from Sasuke's ninjato.
Of course, Naruto was no match for Sasuke, even without his Sharingan, but he'd still put up a decent defense. At least, that's what Yūgao and Kakashi told him. His ego went unbruised, though, since he knew kenjutsu just wasn't his forte. He respected Sasuke's skill with his blade, and let him have the title of swordsman of Team 7.
Kakashi was impressed with Naruto's progress on incorporating lightning into the Rasengan. When the blond demonstrated the jutsu which he'd yet to name, Kakashi, stoic as ever, merely suggested that he come up with a name after expressing subdued pride at what he developed. Naruto had a name in mind, but he wanted to run it by Sasuke to see if it sounded cool enough. Sasuke resumed helping him refine his fireball jutsu, which he'd also made considerable progress with. By now, he was able to produce a projectile sphere of fire in addition to the plume, the latter of which he'd increased in size to nearly fifteen feet across.
Sasuke also took time to hone the fire jutsu he'd discovered, and was able to increase the size of Gōka Mekkyaku to nearly the size of the main gate. He was inspired by Naruto's lightning Rasengan to start experimenting with lightning chakra in the hopes of developing a new jutsu of his own. He hadn't made nearly as much progress as Naruto due to not being able to train with shadow clones, but the jutsu he had in mind required a great deal of lightning chakra and would likely take on a grand form similar in scale to Gōka Mekkyaku.
The day's training was shorter than expected. Naruto and Sasuke only had a couple of spars against their instructors and one against each other. After that, Kakashi, Konan, and Yūgao left the two chūnin at the training field. The last time they had this much spare time was their last day off, so they decided to continue practicing their respective jutsu. Sasuke decided to keep experimenting, while Naruto opted to further refine his lightning Rasengan.
The two chūnin were just about to begin when they heard a familiar voice call out to them.
"Hey! You're still here!"
Naruto and Sasuke snapped their heads to face the owner of the voice: their pink-haired teammate. They noticed that she was wearing a cream-colored haori in addition to her ninja gear, which turned Naruto's whisker-marked cheeks a rosy color before he called back to her.
"Sakura! You're done for the day?" He tried to downplay his excitement, but his toothy smile was a neon sign.
"Yup! Shizune let me and Haku go early today, so I thought I would come see you two. Did Kakashi-sensei finish early with you, also?"
"Yeah. All three of them left, actually," Sasuke answered.
"Three? Isn't it just Kakashi-sensei and Konan?" Sakura asked, puzzled.
"Oh, I guess I never got to tell you. Kakashi-sensei has been having me train with a kenjutsu specialist—she's ANBU."
"She kicked his ass," Naruto sneered.
"Sorry, who was it that beat you in our kenjutsu spar?" Sasuke shot back. Naruto grumbled in response, earning a mischievous smirk from the Uchiha. He turned back to Sakura, taking note of not just her haori, but the muted purple diamond in the middle of her forehead.
Naruto noticed, too, and was the first to express his curiosity. "Hey, Sakura. Where'd you get the haori? And that thing on your forehead—doesn't Granny have the same thing?"
Sakura couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu. "The haori was a gift from Lady Tsunade. Well, it was more of a reward for learning to make this," she explained, pointing to the seal. "This is the Byakugō no In. It's a seal that stores chakra and lets me use powerful healing jutsu. It also eases the amount of chakra I need to perform other jutsu."
Sasuke hummed while Naruto cooed, both genuinely impressed at the capabilities of the seal. Sakura blushed a bit at their reactions, suddenly feeling bashful. It felt good to be with her friends again, especially after they'd been so busy getting stronger for each-other's sake.
"Well, Sasuke and I were gonna train some more, but it's been forever since we went to Ichiraku's together. Whaddaya say?" Naruto suggested, his signature smile plastered on his face.
Not even Sasuke could stop himself from breaking into his own smile as he and Sakura agreed. It had been too long since Team 7 had lunch after training.
Lunch at Ichiraku Ramen was something that Team 7 took comfort in. As genin, Naruto and Sasuke welcomed Sakura into their circle of friends with lunch at Ichiraku's, and it became a ritual after hard days of training. They reunited there after the Chūnin Exams and after Naruto and Sasuke's training trips. They even tried treating Kakashi to lunch after his recovery as part of an elaborate scheme to try and steal a glance underneath his mask. It failed miserably, of course, but it was a fond memory for the trio.
Naruto, in a surprising turn of events, only ate five large bowls of miso char siu, on account of the conversation that the three were having. The ever-curious Naruto wanted to know more about the Byakugō no In, which led to him wanting to know more about the Sōzō Saisei. He usually wasn't interested in the details of medical ninjutsu, but the idea of Sakura being able to heal about as quickly as he could with the Nine-Tails' chakra intrigued him. Sasuke wasn't terribly interested, either, but he appreciated the chakra control needed to successfully perform said medical jutsu. Both were impressed once again at what Sakura accomplished, despite bearing witness to her prowess as a medic in the past.
The trio opted to gather at Naruto and Sasuke's apartment for old times' sake. In the past, they would get together at either boys' apartments if Sakura wasn't able to have company over. Naruto prepared some tea while Sasuke combed through some more scrolls from the Uchiha archives, an enrapt Sakura watching him.
"What're you looking for now, dude? More jutsu?" Naruto called as he poured each of them a cup.
Sasuke shrugged. "Nothing in particular, just looking for anything interesting," he called back as Naruto approached with their tea.
He and Sakura thanked the blond for their tea, and just as Sasuke was about to take a sip, he stumbled upon something unusual: a storage scroll.
Sakura tilted her head. "A storage scroll? Where did you say these were from?"
"They're from my clan's archives. I wouldn't have thought a storage scroll would have been stored in the archives, of all places." Sasuke's voice carried subdued confusion.
"Well don't just stare at it, open it and see what's inside!" Naruto blurted, earning him a scowl from Sakura.
Sasuke pursed his lips as he unrolled the scroll, revealing a seal with the kanji for "crest" in the center. Naruto's brows shot up while Sakura's mouth went slightly agape. The Uchiha hummed with curiosity as he channeled chakra into the seal. The item unsealed itself with a pop and a plume of smoke. Once it cleared, Sasuke found himself holding a navy-blue piece of fabric.
"Uh. Not to be rude or whatever, Sasuke, but what the heck is that thing?" Naruto questioned.
After making a face to admonish her blond teammate, Sakura spoke up. "It's fabric. Maybe it's a banner? Or something?"
Sasuke's brow furrowed slightly as he took the piece of fabric and raised it up. It was a haori, navy-blue with black trim. He turned it around, finding the Uchiha crest emblazoned on the back, large enough that it very well could serve as a banner if so desired. Naruto and Sakura both cooed at the discovery.
"That's actually really cool, Sasuke. I kinda wish I had something like that for the Uzumaki," Naruto remarked. A lightbulb went off in his head. "Hey, I just realized." Sakura and Sasuke turned to him with expectant but curious looks. "We all have like, cloaks. I have my sage cloak, and you two have your haori. Kinda cool, huh?" Naruto flashed his signature grin.
Sakura and Sasuke's eyes met, both giving a small smile before shrugging and nodding. It took Sakura a moment before she realized what Naruto said.
"Wait, what do you mean 'for the Uzumaki'?" Asked an incredulous Sakura.
The Uzumaki in question rubbed the back of his neck, a slightly sad smile gracing his normally cheerful face. "Ah, well, y'see…I, uh…" He fidgeted slightly as he tried to let the words flow. "I found out some more about my parents," he said meekly. Sakura's eyes immediately softened as he continued. "I found out about my mom. I know who she was now. It turns out she was an Uzumaki. They were a clan. I dunno if they were from Konoha or somewhere else, but the First Hokage's wife was an Uzumaki, too. And…Kakashi-sensei knew my mom when he was younger." A smile tugged at his lips while Sasuke perked up. "Turns out she used to bring him and his teammates lunch sometimes. She…apparently she was really nice…" His eyes started to look far-off as his mind wandered.
Sakura placed her hand on top of his, smiling warmly at him. Naruto returned the smile before snapping himself out of his melancholy. "So, yeah. Turns out there's an Uzumaki clan! Cool, huh?"
"I think so. I'm really glad you were able to find out about your mom, Naruto. I know how much it means for you to know more about your parents," Sakura said gently. She turned her attention back to Sasuke. "Try it on! I wanna see how you look!"
"Oh, yeah! I bet you'll look like some kind of ninja samurai or something," Naruto piped up.
Sasuke rose to his feet without a word and slipped the haori on. The navy-blue went well with the grey, as expected, and wasn't as dark as his pants. Naruto cupped his chin and nodded slowly in approval. Sakura couldn't help but stare. Though Naruto's description wasn't eloquent, Sasuke did fit the bill of "ninja samurai," especially with his ninjato.
"You know, this is surprisingly comfortable. It's no wonder you wear that sage cloak, Naruto," Sasuke observed while rolling his shoulders.
The blond flashed his foxy grin and gave a firm nod. "It also makes you look cool!" Sakura stifled a grimace. She knew he meant well, but surely he would need to realize that there was more sentimental and symbolic value in Sasuke's case.
A loud knock at the door echoed through the apartment. Sasuke went to answer it, with Naruto in tow. The two were greeted by an ANBU wearing a bird mask.
"Team 7, your presence is requested by the Hokage. Report to the Hokage Tower immediately," the man recited. With that, he flickered away. The trio blinked, a thick silence hanging over them.
Naruto adjusted his sunglasses as Sasuke cleared his throat awkwardly. "I guess we'd better get going."
"Yeah, it's not good to keep Granny waiting," Naruto mumbled, heaving a sigh through his nose.
Sakura rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Naruto, you gotta quit calling her that. She's the Hokage, you know."
"She might be the Hokage but she's still old!" Naruto retorted, not missing a beat.
"Shut it, whiskers. Let's get going," Sasuke ordered while Sakura all but growled at Naruto.
Naruto let out one last annoyed groan before the trio set out, leaping over the rooftops as they made a beeline for the Hokage Tower.
Shizune was waiting for Team 7 just outside Tsunade's office. Once they arrived, she poked her head in to see if the Hokage was ready for them. After a moment of muffled voices and shuffling papers, she opened the door and ushered the three chūnin inside.
The silence was palpable as they were met by Haku, Yamato, Konan, and Kakashi already there. Their footsteps as they made their way towards Tsunade's desk echoed through the room as multiple pairs of eyes watched them. Naruto tried his best not to crumple under all the prying gazes, while even Sakura and Sasuke felt awkward at apparently being late. Sasuke and Sakura bowed, the latter of whom had to force Naruto to bow by way of grabbing his hair and shoving his head down. The Hokage was unfazed, wearing her best poker face. Normally, she would have been mildly amused at the younger blond and his antics, but today was different.
A moment passed before Tsunade finally spoke. "Alright, everyone. I've summoned you here because I have a mission for you all." Naruto opened his mouth to express his elation, but he was preemptively silenced by Tsunade raising her hand. "Let me be upfront about this. This is an S-ranked mission. Contact with hostile ninja is nearly guaranteed, and you'll be traveling to another hidden village," she stated. The jaws of Team 7 set as the Hokage continued her briefing. "Team 7 will be accompanied by Haku and Captain Yamato to Kumogakure on a diplomatic mission to warn them of an impending attack by the remnants of the Akatsuki. The security of the village and their targets is paramount. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am," the chūnin replied in unison.
The Hokage nodded before rising and stepping in front of the quartet, glancing between them. "It's very likely that the Akatsuki will be on their way to attack the village, much like they did with Suna," she explained before turning to the azure-haired woman, who had been a fly on the wall up until now. "Konan will brief you on the potential combatants you'll be facing." She gestured for Konan to step forward.
"There are six remaining members of the Akatsuki that are currently hunting other jinchūriki. You've already met Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Uchiha, so I'll spare you their briefing." Sasuke stiffened as Konan continued, but she noticed the way he reacted when she mentioned Itachi.
"Kakuzu is from Takigakure originally. He's known for his use of a kinjutsu called Jiongu. It turns the user's body into something of a ragdoll, and fills them with a mass of black threads that act almost like tentacles. He also has four masks that allow him to use water, wind, fire, and lightning jutsu with ease. Another part of his skillset is his vitality, which is bolstered by extracting human hearts and assimilating them. Those hearts are the source of power for his masks. His main motivation is money, and his greed and self-serving nature are proof of that.
"His partner, Hidan, is…a sadist, to put it mildly. He's a devout follower of a deity called 'Jashin,' and his devotion has granted him a degree of immortality. His methods of killing typically involve causing his victims excruciating pain through a kind of curse." Konan's face darkened. "Whatever you do, do not let yourself bleed near Hidan. Once he gets even a drop of your blood, you'll be wide open for his curse. It connects your body to his, and any damage he inflicts on himself will be inflicted onto you. Even if it's lethal, Hidan won't die."
Naruto gaped, while his three companions merely stared incredulously at Konan before she continued. "Then we have Deidara, whom you've also encountered, and Zetsu. Zetsu acts as a spy, gathering intelligence alone."
A thought occurred to Sasuke. "Is there anything we should know about the leader?"
Konan paused, choosing her next words carefully. "He shouldn't be an issue. He's as dead as I could make him. The Akatsuki are very likely in disarray at the moment, so they could be acting on orders from Zetsu. He was the closest to the leader, and often delivered the orders. But it's hard to say." She glanced between the four chūnin, whose jaws were still set.
Tsunade gestured for Konan to continue her briefing, which she acknowledged with a nod. "There are two targets in Kumogakure. Two jinchūriki: the Two-Tails and the Eight-Tails. They would have been captured sooner, but the former leader was…distraught. For some reason, he completely disregarded the original objective, so the other members turned to Zetsu and Nagato for suggestions. Capturing the Four-Tails took longer than expected, and if I recall correctly, the capture of the Five-Tails was unsuccessful. Nagato had grown suspicious of just how everything was going, especially with how the shadow-leader seemed to be acting irrationally. The others didn't bat an eye, strangely enough."
Tsunade nodded as she found her voice again. "We don't know which of the Akatsuki are being sent to Kumo, so be prepared for anyone. I assume you know why we decided to send you in particular, Naruto?" She turned to the younger blond in question, who nodded.
"Because I'm a jinchūriki, too. One who's beaten the Akatsuki before," he answered.
"You reckon that since Naruto is a jinchūriki, he'll be able to relate to their jinchūriki, which means they'll take his word more seriously than someone else's," Sasuke added.
"You're both right," the Hokage acknowledged. She turned her honey colored gaze to Naruto. "You have a knack for getting through to people, brat. Just do what you do best."
Naruto nodded, a small smile adorning his face. A thought popped into his head. "Is Konan staying here?"
Tsunade gave a single nod before turning to address everyone present. "You will set out tomorrow. The journey should take about five days. Here's hoping you don't have to stay there for too long." She made sure to look everyone on the team in the eyes before continuing. "Come back safe, all of you. Take care of each other. Dismissed."
Everyone bowed before exiting the office. Yamato, Kakashi, and Konan let the chūnin go first before they exited. Tsunade couldn't help but heave a sigh as the door closed. She would never admit it out loud, but she worried herself sick over Team 7 sometimes.
The walk home was full of subdued excitement. On the one hand, Naruto was overjoyed to be able to go on a mission with his teammates and friends again. On the other hand, the mission was S-ranked, and for good reason: the possibility of facing more of the Akatsuki was near certain. All of Team 7 plus Haku had gotten stronger, but they were still apprehensive about facing the Akatsuki, especially after the briefing they were given on the remaining members.
Sasuke and Naruto bade goodbye to Sakura before walking quietly back to their apartment. They had an early dinner of chicken curry, courtesy of Sasuke, which they ate in relative silence. It wasn't until they both were studying some of their scrolls that Naruto finally broke the silence.
"Hey, Sasuke."
"Yeah?"
"Are you nervous?"
"About the mission?" Sasuke replied, not looking up from his scroll.
Naruto chose his next words carefully. "About the chance of running into your brother," he said quietly.
Sasuke froze. His eyes were still on the scroll, but they had glazed over with a far-off look. A pregnant moment passed before he found his voice. "Honestly, yes. I know I've been preparing myself for so many years to face him and demand answers from him, but the thought of actually facing him, having to fight him…"
"It feels weird, doesn't it?" Naruto finished.
A sigh escaped the young Uchiha through his nose. His voice was a low rumble as he spoke. "Yeah, that's one way to put it." He rolled the scroll up and reached for another as he continued. "I used to think revenge was the only thing that mattered. You and Kakashi-sensei made me realize that it isn't. To be honest, I don't know how I feel about facing him."
Naruto took a small sip of tea. "What do you think you'll do if that happens?"
There was a pause before Sasuke answered. "I don't know," he said before pausing again to organize his thoughts. "I…don't think I'll kill him. I don't want to kill him anymore. I just want answers. I want to know why he did what he did." He struggled to keep his lower lip from quivering as he felt a mélange of emotions course through him.
Naruto put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'll be right there with you if you need me, Sasuke. You don't have to face him alone."
Sasuke took a deep breath, placing his hand on top of Naruto's. "I know. Thank you."
A moment passed before the two returned to their scrolls. As he read through his fūinjutsu scroll, another thought invaded Naruto's mind. "Hey Sasuke?"
The Uchiha hummed in response.
"Do you think I'm ready?"
Sasuke paused his reading to turn to his friend. "What do you mean?"
Naruto shrugged. "Ready for this mission, I guess. Well, not really. I mean, am I ready to fight with my Rinnegan, do you think?"
"Konan was one of the leaders of the Akatsuki, right? She's not easy to beat in a spar, and you won more as time went on. Even then, you beat Pain without the Rinnegan before. Whoever they send our way, Itachi or not, is gonna be in for a surprise," Sasuke reassured.
Naruto couldn't help but smile. "That means a lot, coming from you. Thanks."
They sat for a while more, poring over their respective scrolls. Naruto was the first to roll up and set it aside. He washed his teacup and made his way to his room. "I think I'm gonna pack and try to get some sleep. See you in the morning, Sasuke," he said over his shoulder.
"Yeah, same here. See you tomorrow. Don't make me drag you outta bed," Sasuke replied as he put away his own scroll. Naruto responded with a snort as Sasuke washed his own teacup before retiring to his room to pack.
"A mission? Really? Where to?" Ino probed as she sipped on some tea.
Sakura let a small sigh escape her. She knew Ino had a big mouth when it came to sensitive information, whether it was who's interested in who or anything that was on a need-to-know basis. "I can't tell you. All I can say is that I'll be gone for a week, probably more," she explained, hoping to sate her roommate's thirst for information.
"Oh, I get it. One of those missions. Don't worry about it, Forehead, I hear ya loud and clear." She took another drink as Sakura sat down with her own cup, letting herself relax. Ino picked up on her subtle tells: her fingers were twitching ever so slightly against the teacup, and she was staring into her tea.
"You're nervous, aren't you?" Ino questioned, her tone almost motherly.
Sakura's emerald eyes snapped up to meet Ino's baby blues. They were stern, but they held concern beneath. She gave a small nod. "It's just been awhile since I've been on an actual mission. I hope I'm ready for this," she said quietly.
Ino scoffed. "Hey, buck up, Forehead. You've been training like crazy this past month. You'll be fine!"
Sakura smiled meekly as she took a sip. Ino's eyes narrowed, sensing more than just a lack of self-confidence. She tapped her chin with her manicured finger before she spoke quietly. "You're worried about something. Or someone," she stated.
The pink haired girl froze before she gave the tiniest of nods. Ino let out a sigh. "Alright, Forehead. Spill. You're not leaving this table until you tell me what's on your mind," she ordered.
"Okay, yes, you're right. I'm worried about someone—or rather some people," Sakura relented as she set her teacup down. "I'm just worried about Naruto and Sasuke. If anything happened to either of them and I couldn't do anything…" She didn't want to finish that sentence, lest her mind wander even more than it already was.
She was snapped out of her ruminations by Ino's hand resting on hers. "Hey. Don't worry so much. They're strong, and so are you. You'll all be okay. Alright?" Ino's voice was soft and soothing, like a gentle summer rain.
Sakura took a deep breath, letting the words sink in. "You're right, Ino. Thank you." She smiled warmly at the platinum blonde, who returned it with her own smile. The two young women sat in silence for a bit, drinking tea and enjoying each other's company. Sakura finished her tea and retreated to her room for the night to pack and try and sleep. Ino followed suit soon after, though she stayed up a little longer to read some material that her father gave her regarding the finer points of gathering intel using her clan's jutsu.
Despite the reassurances, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura couldn't help but feel nervous. They'd hunted for Orochimaru, but this was different. The possibility of meeting the Akatsuki head-on in a foreign village, along with Naruto's newly acquired dōjutsu only raised the stakes. The prospect of facing Itachi did no favors for Sasuke, either. Team 7 slept eventually, but not before tossing and turning restlessly.
A/N: The plot continues! I know this is silly, but I just love the thought of Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke having their own cloaks to make them look cool.
Translations:
Byakugō no In - Strength of A Hundred Seal
Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku - Fire Style/Release: Great Fire Annihilation/Majestic Destroyer Flame
Sōzō Saisei - Creation Rebirth/Mitotic Regeneration
Jiongu - Earth Grudge Fear/Earth Grudge
Thanks so much for reading! Chapter 18 in the works!
