A/N: Heehee! So sorry about making you fine folks wait…life happened. This chapter is mostly…well, not much. However, it was required – without this, the next one wouldn't make as much sense! I must thank my dear friend Shujou Queen for helping me with this – girl, you rock! So, without further ado, here is the next installment!

Except…

Disclaimer: Naruto, sadly, does not belong to me, nor will I ever be rich enough to buy it. cries

Chapter 2: Bingo Book

Naruto awoke, feeling very warm, despite the fact that he was only clothed in a blanket. A very big, thick, fuzzy blanket, to be sure, but a blanket all the same. It seemed that someone had stoked the fire, for he was sure it had not been big enough to last the whole night. Scratching his head, Naruto figured that it must have been Sasuke, ignoring the fact that said shinobi was still asleep on the floor. He got up, and tugged at his clothes. They didn't come. He pulled harder. They still didn't come. He pulled even harder, adding some chakra for a good measure. His clothes immediately decided to come off, just as he was pulling so hard, causing him to land in a heap with them, with a loud noise. "Stupid, why didn't you just lift them, instead of tugging at them?" came a lazy voice from the floor. Naruto gritted his teeth. He struggled into his orange outfit, grumbling under his breath something to the effect of one-day-I'll-become-Hokage-and-show-you-all-who's-the-stupid-one-believe-it. Sasuke did not pass up an opportunity to comment on Naruto's audible boasting, and soon the two boys were in a heated argument about everything and nothing.

"I was the one who ended up killing him, you Uchicha freak!"

"But I was the one who made it so that your pathetic attempt could reach him, idiot."

"You obviously don't understand that I am the superior ninja!"

"You can't even imagine what it means to be superior! Your brain is too small!"

"Oh yeah? Well, I'm not the one who had to ask me for advice when Kakashi had us climbing trees back in the Land of Waves!"

"You had to ask a woman first!"

"Well, you smell like a dead fish!"

"You think that's an insult? Wow, your brain is smaller than I thought!"

"Oh, yeah? Well, Kakashi-sensei likes me better!"

"As if, you idiot! It's obvious that, since I am better, and have more potential, that he looks to me to lead you all!"

"You are better, huh? Who managed to kill the biggest, tallest ninja ever with so many shuriken, you couldn't even see his face?"

"Tallest ninja ever? Why, is your brain too small to remember Zabuza?"

"Well, I have more chakra then you!"

"At least I know how to use mine!"

"QUIET!"

At Sakura's voice, both boys stopped, and slowly turned to look at their furious companion. "I am tired of you two fighting like five-year-olds! You are supposed to be ninja, and therefore mature! What's more, you are teammates, and supposed to work together, not argue! I oughta…" As she ranted on, Naruto turned to Sasuke and mumbled "Looks like she's feeling back to her old self." Sasuke nodded mutely, and the two of them snuck to the kitchen to avoid the irate kunoichi.

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After hours of fruitless searching, Kakashi was almost ready to give up. He cursed the day that his genin had ever learnt to create clones. He cursed himself for teaching them how to evade pursuit. But most of all, he cursed whatever god had decided to add insult to injury by causing the rain to pour so damn hard. He hated water. With a passion that burned with the heat of a thousand suns. There he was, thinking of sunshine again. Gods, how he hated rain. And he hated his dreadfully adept little genin. He hated everything this morning. Including the fact that he, a jounin, former ANBU, couldn't track three little kids. It wasn't his fault, he told himself. Naruto and Sasuke had managed to make it seem as though their clones were carrying something about Sakura's weight, and somehow had made blood drop on their trails where it would have fallen if Sakura had been as hurt as the battle site suggested.

He resolved to teach them how to leave clues for friendly pursuit. If he ever found them. He had tried about a hundred of the paths that night, and every one of them had led to a dead end. Closing his eyes, he focused his chakra, searching for theirs. He was disconcerted to only feel Naruto's, and at that, very faintly. At least, though, he was able to tell which direction they had headed off in. That left only about 50 paths to try. Kakashi sighed and picked one at random to follow.

It was just his luck that it led to a small clearing that had enough footprints, blood, and signs of a body being put down to show that he had finally chosen the right path. They had stopped here, and, it seemed, someone had come, whom they had followed, not bothering to send extra clones out. Or, perhaps, their chakra was so depleted that they couldn't. Or maybe they were under an illusion jutsu and felt safe. Or…Kakashi shook hi head and sat down next to a tree. He could sense Naruto's chakra a bit more clearly now, and Sasuke's was very faintly present. He knew he was on the right track. He resolved to get some rest before he traveled on, and promptly fell asleep.

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Sakura sat, staring into the fire, while Sasuke stood outside the house, training on focusing his chakra through the stormy weather, and Naruto gulped down copious amounts of ramen in the kitchen. Sasuke had an excuse, but Sakura knew he was watching for danger. Naruto had an excuse, but Sakura could feel his chakra examining the house, looking for danger. Only she had no good reason to sit where she was. Her chakra was neither strong nor plentiful enough to examine the house the way Naruto was. Her eyes were better than her other senses, so in this rain, she would have made a poor look out. She sighed, and thought, not for the first time, 'Why am I on this squad? Why am I even a ninja?' She wasn't strong, she didn't have much chakra, she constantly required protection, and she had put her companions' lives in danger by loosing consciousness. Maybe, when this was over, she would tell everyone that she was no good, and would resign from ninja life. Maybe she…

Her thoughts were interrupted by smooth, strong voice. "Small one, why do you doubt yourself?"

Sakura turned to see her healer sitting upright in a chair, and smiling at her. "I just…well…I'm not as strong as they are, and I put them in a lot of danger. I don't deserve to be one of them. I don't even have a lot of chakra!" As Sakura was speaking, the woman stood, and walked over to where she was sitting. She smiled at the younger girl, and sat down beside her. "What does your sensei think of you?" At that, Sakura's face brightened. "Well, he says that I am doing well, and he is proud of the control I have over my chakra, and about how much I know." The woman laughed, a soft, cheerful sound, "You are very lucky, small one. My sensei did not approve of females as ninja, and, consequently, did not really train me. It is good that things have changed since I was a genin in your village." Sakura blinked "Our…our…you…but…you trained in the village hidden in the leaves?" The woman nodded. "Yes, I did. My name is Ayumi Higurashi. I passed my genin and chounin exams there."

"Wow," Sakura said, shaking her head. "That is so neat! Imagine…but, I'm being rude. Forgive me, Ayumi-sama. My name is Sakura Haruno. I…well, I'm still a genin."

The two shinobis, in a burst of companionship, hugged, then giggled. Ayumi offered to show Sakura some of the jutsus she had used in healing the girl, and they went off to the corner of the room to practice.

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In the meantime, Naruto had finished examining the house, and went outside to join Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke. You said, last night, that there are stories about this run down old place. Can you tell me about them?"

They raven-haired boy nodded, and began, "Long, long ago, the Higurashi clan built a mansion. It was a safe house for any ninja who needed a place to stay. One story, that is passed down in my clan says that, one cold night…

Flashback to the time of the story:

A man, running through the woods, covered in blood. His clothes are torn almost to shreds. Thick, red liquid pours from all over his body. A passing ninja could sense that he has almost no chakra left. His eyes, two spinning red orbs, are wide open in frantic worry, and indescribable pain. His headband, bearing the crest of a stylized leaf, is broken in three pieces, but still, it is tied to his forehead. He stumbles and falls. Soon, a figure steps out of the blinding snow, bearing a lantern. It beckons to the fallen shinobi, who gets to his feet and follows. He is taken to a huge house, where he is fed, clothed, his wounds healed, his headband repaired, and his name is not asked. As he is preparing to go, thanking his hosts, a jutsu comes crashing through the woods. A fireball jutsu. A huge fireball jutsu. One of the owners, a woman, removes a cloth that covered her green eyes. They flash purple, and the jutsu reverses direction. The man is sent off, and he meets a known rogue ninja on his way out of the grounds. The badly hurt shinobi is limping toward the house, when a figure comes running up, and helps him the rest of the way.

"So, you see, " Sasuke finished, "that the house was a safe haven – not even ANBU could get you there. But ANBU agents, if hurt, could get their wounds treated, just the same as a rogue ninja, or even a normal one. Even ceremonial battles were forbidden on the grounds, and the Higurashi clan backed up their rules with the Ikaesu Gaisen skill. It was a place of safety. Unfortunately, too many of the clan died. One of the last heirs came to train in out village, it is said, but no one knows what became of her, or even if the stories that she was there are true. The whole place, the whole clan, is shrouded in mystery."

Naruto grinned. "Thanks, Sasuke! You can bet that I'll un-0shroud them! Believe it!"

A/N: And here I leave you. At least this one has some sense of closure, although I'm not very happy with it. It seems to…unpolished. But, at least its up, and the important points have been made. Thanks so much to my wonderful readers, and a big round of applause for Shujuo Queen. I hope that the argument was satisfactory!

I will get around to the next one as soon as I can!

Youkai kagami