Sarutobi was exhausted.
Three more piles of pending paperwork to be done and there were two meetings he had to attend, one with the Hyuga clan over some conflicts and the other with the Konoha elders over current affairs with the village.
And just staring at the heap wasn't helping a bit.
Being Hokage was certainly not an easy job, especially at this age. When he was younger, he handled the job much more efficiently and with more enthusiasm. He really needed to retire.
"I wish you were here…Biwako." He sighed sadly, blowing out a puff of smoke from his pipe as he gazed out the window, overlooking the village. If she were here, perhaps he could be at least a bit more enthusiastic on the job; she'd never let him slack off.
Also, there'd be the sweet words of encouragement. He needed that, at his age. As Naruto made his first breath, she and several others breathed their last. Not too a few minutes later, the infant's own parents did so as well. He didn't blame the child of course; he rather admired the almost-clone of Minato with Kushina's cheeky personality.
"Speak of the devil, here arrives the troublemaker…" he muttered to himself as he saw the boy run towards the Hokage mansion. Chaos would start in a while and he would be prepared for it…almost as usual.
It would begin with the dramatic slamming of the doors.
"OLD MAN!" He cringed as Naruto burst in, seconds later. "WHEN IS SAKURA NEE COMING BACK?! SASUKE IS STILL SICK AND I'M BOOOOREEED!"
Ah so that what he was upset about this time. Normally it would be about some kid who stole his new toy, being chased out of a shop or having no one to play with. Thankfully with the pink haired demon's proclaim that she was the only one entitled to punish him, kids no longer bothered him…physically at least.
"Calm down Naruto, she just left yesterday." He turned his head around to regard the furious looking boy and smiled nervously. "Why don't you go back to playing with Sasuke-"
"I SAID HE'S BORING!"
Ah, to bear a child's temper tantrum calmly was something only a select few could achieve. He had seen hell when he had to put up with the little sannin's and hoped his days of babysitting youngsters would be over. And yet…here was…
"You used to entertain yourself before."
"That was before I met Sasuke and Oneechan. But Neechan isn't here and Sasuke has a stupid cold."
"…You couldn't have forgotten how to play by yourself now have you….?"
"I haven't! It's just that I had more fun playing with more people darn it!" With that, he plopped down on the ground while giving him the squinted glare. It was his way of showing that he was clearly annoyed and that this poor old man was the cause of it. Oh joy.
There was one option left to try to get him to leave.
"How about I treat you to ramen this afternoon?"
To his mild surprise, the boy snorted loudly before crossing his tiny hands over his chest, grinning at him with amusement sparkling in his deep blue eyes. "Nice one old man but Shisui San had given me a lesson on how to avoid bribes no matter how tempting-"
"It will be at Ichiraku." Sarutobi quickly added. "Also, I'll treat you dinner and won't tell your friend that you didn't eat veggies." He continued, as if he didn't see the little drool sliding down Naruto's chin. "I'll also toss in two free coupons."
"DEAL!"
Of all the people…he had Shisui to teach him on how to not give in to food. Irony was truly at its best...
"Oh…!" He blinked as his elbow hit a random file, making it fall off the paper-laden table of work. Mumbling a few incoherent curses, he bent over and retrieved it, ignoring the discomfort that spread up his back.
As he peeked inside the folder, he saw that it contained the details of the new team who had recently embarked on their first mission only yesterday. He began to wonder how they were getting along as of now.
He doubted that they would immediately start cooperating, because of quite many legit reasons.
The first problem wasn't with Sakura; it was between the three boys. Though Itachi and Shisui got along quite well (they had been friends as long as they could remember), the personality differences were bound to get in the way of them working together.
Itachi was one who was maturing faster than Kakashi in terms of shinobi skill and intelligence and it was obvious that the little genius would pass as somewhat irritating to the copy-nin. Though he was not one to openly point out the mistakes and flaws of others, he would put his opinion forward where it was critical and when he did…he would present it in the most elaborate manner as possible.
Still, the boy preferred to silently agree with the plan a leader set out for him instead of interfering with the decision and would carry the task out without so much as a murmur. In order for a mission to be complete, a task to be finished without any drawbacks, it was critical that the apprentices should follow the orders without delay.
Shisui on the other hand had more experience at being a team leader than his friend and his type was to openly point out and reject opinions; whether it was inappropriate to the situation or whether it would offend the other did not matter. Unlike Itachi, Shisui of the Body-Flicker technique would not stay put with his lips sealed during any discussion and would always try to improve an idea which was always presented.
His thinking was that a plan put forward by a single person would not work out properly, considering not everyone's ideology was the same. Even if a team leader would command his subordinates to carry out the task, they would not do it willingly. Therefore, chances that the mission would be put into jeopardy were greater and to avoid it, all had to contribute to whatever they had in mind to a discussion.
Then there was Kakashi, who was still clearly uncomfortable about assuming the position of a team's captain after what happened years ago with his first team. It was obvious that even though he was aware of the capabilities the three children had, there was little to no chance that he would allow them to engage themselves in any dangerous face-offs with the enemy where he couldn't see them.
Especially since this time, there were two Uchiha to consider.
Last time, after he had returned to Konoha with Obito missing, the whole of the Uchiha elders had nearly murdered him on the belief that he had purposely killed his comrade in order to steal his sharingan.
As such, Kakashi trusted himself no more than the Uchiha elders and Obito's family did.
'The second problem…little pink demon Sakura…' he thought as an amused chuckle escaped from his lips. The Uchiha council refused to trust her and demanded that she attend a formal meeting with them; which will be held after the mission hopefully.
She had the worst temper and though it was unlikely that she would let her emotions get better of her on a mission, something told him that he should be concerned for Shisui's and Kakashi's wellbeing. Her temper after all, rivaled Tsunade's as from what he gathered from his memory.
Itachi was well-mannered therefore; it was safe to assume that he would not be physically assaulted as much. Still, the boy seemed to like irritating her just for the sake of humoring himself. So then, it would be safe to assume that he would be less physically assaulted than the other two.
A perverted captain, an idiot, a sadist and a silent genius; could it be that he had just assembled history's worst team?
"I CURSE YOU KAKASHI! CURSE YOU AND ALL YOUR FUTURE OFFSPRING TO HELL! AND MAY YOUR MANHOOD SHRINK TO THE SIZE OF A PEANUT!"
"Oh shut up and put this on." The annoyed captain sighed as he picked up the dog mask and put it over Shisui's head. "Can you see through the eye holes?"
"SCREW YOU! I CAN'T SEE SHIT! AND IT'S HOT INSIDE THIS THING! I CAN'T EVEN BREATHE! GET IT OFF SCARECROW MAN!"
Sakura clicked her tongue sympathetically as she watched Kakashi pull off the mask and hit Shisui on the head before telling him to shut up once more. That done, he began carving the small holes to a bigger size. The latter who was sweating profusely, wiped his forehead with the back of the paw as he scowled further.
Guarding a spoiled prince was one of the hardest things to accomplish for a shinobi considering it took a lot of patience, false smiles and coaxing to calm one down.
He was the only son of a tired and widowed (and yet shockingly young looking) king and was ridiculously spoiled. While just around Itachi's age, he acted like an overly-demanding two year old who had a destructive personality. Also, he hated shinobi. Double that with shinobi with an attitude.
And so, Shisui was to become his loyal pet bear 'Toto' who would do nothing except to follow him around 24/7.
"Shisui stop sulking." Itachi murmured as he spared a wary glance at his best friend. "You were the one who snapped when he made fun of your nose."
"My nose is not huge!" It came out as a large whine that sounded as if he might start crying soon and it was quite evident that he was going to be upset for a good long time. Apparently even Itachi had no idea that his best friend was extremely self-conscious about his facial features, until now.
"Don't worry Shisui. It looks pretty normal to me. He was probably just being rude as most princes are." Sakura offered kind words in order to calm him down. She could relate with him, somewhat, knowing that she too used to be extremely self-conscious about her appearance. (She still was but was nowhere near admitting it to anyone, anytime soon.)
Kakashi snorted as he dragged the mask over the twelve-year olds head once more. "Big or not, he didn't have to scream and try to attack our client. Our job is to protect him; not to rip his tongue. Thanks to you we all are in trouble. And you-"
The pinkette smiled sweetly as the visible eye hardened and turned to try burn a hole in her head. "Why did you have to agree with the idiot!?"
"Hey, Shisui was right for once." She murmured as she observed her fingernails, not making any effort to hide her amusement at the sight of seeing her sensei so riled up. "I for one agree that the guy is a complete asshole. Even the poor ol' King is wary of him."
The team's captain let out a loud cry of exasperation before he placed a hand over his face. He had a feeling that this mission was going to end up in complete failure, considering the attitude of his three temporary teammates.
Sarutobi Sama surely must have been drinking something to have assembled them together. This was definitely not going to work out.
"Look," he sighed as he turned to the three. "I know that you are upset with this mission considering the attitude of our client and the…situations presented to us…but you have to work it out at least until the problems with the kingdom are done with."
"I wouldn't have a problem with any of this, if he didn't have to go ahead and order me to be his stupid pet." Shisui remarked quietly.
Itachi just silently scrutinized everyone for around three whole minutes before his gaze settled upon Sakura's face. She seemed to be really enjoying the mission so far; even with the prince had ordering her to be his personal maid for the time being, she didn't seem to have any problem with it.
"What… is there something on my face?" He blinked and averted his eyes as she asked, shaking his head.
"I'm just wondering why you seem to be enjoying yourself."
"Oh, that." She smiled. "I just happen to enjoy seeing sensei getting riled up."
"Don't call me sensei. The way you say it makes it sound a lot less innocent." Kakashi sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Kakashi Sensei~" She promptly said, the smile still on her face.
After staring at her face for solid five long seconds, he decided to pretend he didn't hear it and walked across the room to retrieve his bag with the mission details. "Shisui, you get the hell going to find the prince and stay with him. Under no circumstances are you allowed to let him slip from your sight." He instructed as he approached the door.
"As for you two, keep a close watch on suspicious persons around the castle and under no circumstances are you allowed to leave the castle without letting me know. And, supposing you get into trouble with enemies, call for me through a summoning, clone or whatever. I will be with the king. Do not attempt to fight on your own. Have I made myself clear?"
"Yes." The two Uchiha murmured. Sakura merely waved her hand as she looked out the window, adjusting to try getting comfortable on the sill.
The two sat in comfortable silence for a while before Sakura turned to regard the dark haired Uchiha who seemed to be slightly bored while re-reading a novel he had already finished on the trip here. A light bulb lit over her head and she smiled wider.
"Let's play a game Itachi San. I'm bored and so are you."
"….Okay?"
"It's a guessing game. Each one of us gets a turn in asking the other odd questions about a certain object in which the person who is being question has to guess what the object is. Should I lose, I will do whatever you tell me to do…for a month."
"And if I lose…?"
"You follow me outside to go have some fun around the village for the day."
Oh hell no.
Half an hour later, a disgruntled Uchiha trudged behind his female teammate through the busy, late afternoon crowd of the village with a slight scowl on his face.
"You are the most cunning woman I have ever come across my entire life." He muttered as she paused near a stall to buy some fried shrimp. "You do realize Kakashi will murder us once he finds out about this?"
"Oh hush." He nearly choked as she shoved a whole roasted shrimp into his mouth before paying the stall owner. "I didn't cheat at all; you were just unlucky. And there is no way he will find out; my shadow clones are half my strength and they are capable of taking down at least three dozen bandits before they disappear."
"Anyway, why don't you admit it? You are enjoying this."
Itachi didn't answer; or rather couldn't. Shrimp were chewy and it could take a while before he could swallow down the whole thing. Since he was hungry and since she did so much as pay for it, he didn't have the heart to throw it away. So until then, he couldn't utter a word. Lovely.
He let the girl guide him through the unpleasant crowds of people, sticking as close to her as possible without making physical contact in order to avoid touching random people too much. The smell of frying fish, rotten vegetables and sweat was thick in the muggy, hot air and it was largely uncomfortable to him.
The kingdom of Kōrogi warau – Laughing Crickets was extremely different from Konoha and even though he shouldn't have been really surprised, one thing intrigued him greatly.
Everyone loved the little insects.
It was a bit unnerving to see even little children carry them around and speak to them as though as they were their friends, choosing to hear their chirps over buying new toys that flashed so invitingly in the window shops.
"Want something to drink?" he snapped his attention back to the pinkette who now held an apple juice packet in her hands, looking rather apologetic. "Your cheeks are going to hurt if you don't swallow that soon."
Bowing slightly, he accepted it gratefully and took a long sip. It took him another minute to swallow down the whole thing completely and as she said, his mouth did feel slight discomfort after being stretched for so long.
"Sorry." She grinned sheepishly, scratching her own cheek. "Does it really hurt?"
"Just a mild discomfort." He assured her, a small smile gracing his lips. "It wouldn't be the first time someone stuffed food into my mouth forcefully. My mother is just as violent as you are; she doesn't show that part around you."
"…No way."
"Her best friend was Kushina San…"
Blinking owlishly, she turned around and began walking forward, seemingly lost in thought. Itachi followed quietly, hands stuffed inside his pockets as he glanced around the place. He wondered where she was heading off to; they shouldn't be straying too far from the palace.
"So…that would mean Mikoto and Kushina san meant to make my Naruto and Sasu-Chan friends from birth!" He blinked at her sudden declaration.
"Well…they planned it but-"
"I KNEW IT. They were destined for each other!"
"…Sakura San. That would be easily misinterpreted by anyone."
"So you know stuff like that eh? You had the 'talk' at this age?"
"I figured it out. Besides…there was Shisui…and now you and Kakashi."
"I am so proud to be the third pevy sensei!"
"…You need to get your mentality checked."
"I was a certified psycho from birth. I started from being a rabid fan girl and became a simple killing machine in due time."
...Well, at least she wasn't boring unlike most people he knew. In fact, it was the most amusing thing to discuss random topics with her. It was unlikely that he would have the same type of a conversation with anyone else and he doubted anyone but a selective few would be able to exchange words with her without being completely flabbergasted.
In all honesty though, right now he was completely concerned for their well being should Kakashi find out that she had snuck out…and dragged him along with her just for the sake of 'secretly' investigating around the village.
It was highly amusing that Sakura still thought that he was still unaware of what she was up to. She was easier to read than a book and he wondered how she would react once he told her that. He doubted she'd take it well.
In any case, he opted to follow her around without commenting on her task, occasionally arguing and talking about random topics. (she did most of the talking however as Shisui did)
Midday passed and the two shinobi decided to stop for some dango and tea in a café, where Sakura mumbled incoherent curses and occasionally loudly complaining about how weird the mission and the village were. He listened patiently, chuckling every now and then at her choice of words.
Once or twice he had to clamp his hand over her mouth as she swore loudly. She seemed to constantly forget that she wasn't an adult anymore, much to his chagrin.
For Sakura, she was completely annoyed with how her investigation turned out so far. Weird was an understatement for the village; they all unnerved her.
One reason she had snuck out was solely for the purpose of disobeying Kakashi (over the years as an ANBU she had acquired the habit of occasionally ignoring rules and orders imposed on her by higher authorities- the two old bats in the council mostly) but the other was to observe the village out of mild curiosity.
According to the king; groups of bandits attacked the village now and then without warning and usually left with valuables and occasionally a woman or a girl. And by the time the soldiers acted, it was too late and the damages were done.
He had called them when they raided the palace thrice and tried to kidnap his son. Only they didn't take any valuables; they were only after the royal bastard.
So judging by it all, she assumed that the poor civilians must have been traumatized to the inches of their life. Instead they all carried on as normal people would. Even the children were out playing without adult supervision. Honestly, what kind of parents would leave their children out to play with the dangers around right now?
"What do we do antisocial weasel San?" she mumbled as she placed her head on the table.
Itachi was nonplussed at the odd nickname suddenly bestowed on him and yet, chose to ignore it for the time being. "I don't know." He answered as he raised a stick of Mitarashi dango to his lips.
"Come on, you should've gathered something by now."
Ah, so she knew that he was aware of her intentions. The stick remained suspended in the air, barely touching his lips as a smile graced it.
"And here I thought I would surprise you Sakura san." He chuckled as he bit down on one sweet dumpling, savoring the rich flavor that coated his tongue. She followed, drinking some tea afterwards before giving him a pointed look.
"You are fucking Uchiha Itachi. Underestimating you will be a serious mistake." She muttered, crossing her hands over her chest. "Even though you look like a cute, innocent boy who anyone would be smitten by a mere glance, you are more cunning than a red fox. I know that at least."
"…Cute, innocent boy?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Don't tell me you didn't notice all those girls stalking you."
"...huh?"
She stared at him, trying to decide between flicking a finger against his forehead or to face-palm. His confused expression, complete with his head slightly cocked to one side only served to make him look even more childish.
"Those poor girls…" she mumbled as she recollected catching glimpses of shy girls who hid behind trees and turned pink whenever he passed by. Yesterday, right before they set off, two girls approached him with overly reddened cheeks and wished him luck for the mission. It seemed he was completely oblivious all this time to their little actions of affection.
Ah well, at least it was better than Sasuke from her time. He used to glare at any girl who would so much as dare to touch him. Most were frightened away; except her. Unpleasant memories of her rabid fangirl days swept through her mind and she visibly shuddered.
If she were to meet the mini her from this time, she was going to train her to not be attracted by cute Uchiha boys. If that was at all possible that is…
"Sakura San." She came back to reality as Itachi snapped his fingers in front of her. "What's wrong? You seem extremely annoyed by something."
"I remembered the time when I was a rabid fan girl." She sighed as she picked up her now, cool cup of green tea and took a sip. It was too bitter for her taste but she didn't complain. "But really, you are completely unaware of their affections towards you?"
"Who?"
"Those girls from the academy and your clan. You can't be completely unaware of it."
"They scare me."
She promptly choked on her tea.
"You are the worst!" Kakashi dodged a plate that was tossed at his head. Shisui, who was sitting beside a pet's food bowl on the floor scowled behind his mask.
The king spared an apologetic look towards the copy nin and his teammate who was dressed as a bear before he sighed.
"Maitake, I cannot allow you to leave even with the shinobi around." He tried to pat his son's head, only to be brushed off rudely. "I am doing this for your own protection son."
"Screw it! I want to go outside!" The fourteen year old prince yelled, flinging a chair at Kakashi who moved to the side calmly to avoid being hit.
The King stared at his son warily before sighing. Nodding at Kakashi he walked out of the room and locked the door behind him. The action made the already furious boy snap and he began throwing and overturning everything in his sight. Shisui crawled towards Kakashi and sat beside him wordlessly and they both watched the prince vent his anger out on the furniture.
Being a pet, Shisui was not allowed to stand or walk at all; instead having to crawl to places and eat from a pet bowl. Initially he hated the seemingly conceited boy but once he saw why the prince acted this way, he couldn't help but feel slightly sorry.
Ever since the attacks, he had been denied the right from leaving his room, which had no windows that even offered a glimpse of the outside world. Only a few holes were drilled near the ceiling to allow in air. Food was delivered to him by guards who rarely spoke to him. He must've felt like a prisoner.
Even then, he still saw the teenager as being annoying and self-centered.
"Hey, do you think Sakura's coaxing could calm him down?" Shisui whispered to Kakashi as Maitake collapsed on his bed, burying his face into the pillows while screaming.
"I don't know really." Kakashi murmured. "She does have this motherly aura around Naruto but this guy is older than her…."
"She is older that three of us mentally." Shisui argued. "Itachi does a good job at calming people down too. He's a good listener and-"
"Bears don't talk Toto. Shut up and go to sleep." He blinked as the prince ordered, shooting him a glare. Shisui refused to budge, annoyance creeping up to him once more. Kakashi prodded him with his foot, to which he grudgingly crawled over to the pet bed and lay down, obviously sulking.
As Kakashi straightened a fallen chair, he wondered whether he should really let Sakura and Itachi take over babysitting the kid. He really was not cut out for this. Besides Shisui was right; the two kids were better at tolerating annoying loud babies.
After a few minutes of cleaning, he was out using the spare key given to him by the king, heading towards the room where he left the two Chuunin. He hoped that Sakura had listened to him and stayed put without going anywhere. She had a tendency to do exactly the opposite of what he ordered her to do.
According to her, it was a habit which she grew on as a quiet form of going against the Konoha elders but soon extended it to anyone she didn't really didn't feel like following.
Well at least Itachi was there to force some manners down her, hopefully. If he could control Shisui, he could control Sakura...hopefully. They did say that good manners tend to rub off on people.
"You two, I need you to take over guarding the prince." He announced as he opened the door, half expecting Sakura to be gone. To his relief the pinkette was still present and was engrossed in a game of cards with the genius Uchiha kid. He blinked as Itachi looked up, a stupid look replacing his normal cool expression.
"Ah Kakashi! Come play with us!" He grinned waving his hand, motioning him over. The action shocked him and he stumbled a few steps back, wondering whether the infamous stoic Uchiha Itachi had just grinned. He watched Sakura plant a large blow onto his head with a scowl.
"Idiot! We have to go babysit the prince!"
"I don't want to…can't you do it Kakashi?"
Kakashi blinked slowly. Once. Twice.
Slowly then, he exited the room as calmly as possible and stood outside for a few seconds. Then, he reopened the door to see Itachi throttling the pinkette, screaming that she cheated. Sakura in return hooked two fingers up his nose and grinned as he howled in pain.
"Um…Itachi?" The copy nin whispered weakly, holding up a finger.
"Yeah, yeah! Let's go protect the prince." He stood up with a pout and rubbing his nose, sulked out of the room. Kakashi stared after him and Sakura as they both walked to the chamber.
For a long time, the copy nin just stood there, his hand frozen on the doorknob as his mind replayed what just happened. Was it a wrong idea to leave the sane boy alone with her?
It was clear as day; Sakura broke Itachi's stoic-ness.
"Oh no…" he groaned as he squatted down, burying his face with his hands. "I let Sakura snap Itachi's sanity…Fugaku San will murder me! Hokage Sama...help me..."
And that was how 'Toto' found him an hour later, still frozen in the same pose with a look of abashed horror across his face.
Mucking around silently in the thick, dense growth of the forest, the little girl with eyes bright as spring leaves gave a cursory glance around before hiding in a large opening in the trunk of a tree. Her wide forehead was stinging terribly, all because of the rock that bully had thrown at it while taunting about how huge it was.
All she wanted to do was play in the park and then go back home and sleep while waiting for her mum and dad to arrive home. And yet, each time she went out to the park, that particular group would be waiting somewhere to pelt her with rocks and eggs, all the while sneering at her for being ugly. Today was no different and she was sure that they were hiding here somewhere...just waiting for her to come out.
The six year old wanted to run off the very moment and yet, her common sense warned her that it would not be a wise decision at this moment where those ambushers could be hiding anywhere. The smartest thing to do was to creep around and hide whenever any voice was sounded, all until she could see her village in sight.
It had not yet occurred to her that with midday approaching quickly, the kids must have already left her by herself to go home and enjoy their lunch before settling for an afternoon nap. Venturing into the forest alone was certainly not approved for little children and they weren't keen to get caught, especially when harassing a little girl with a huge forehead.
Her stomach growled as she adjusted to try get comfortable in the small, cramped and dark temporary hiding place, which smelled of rotting wood and apples.
Apples
Without thinking, she bolted out to get a good glimpse of the trees around her. To her utmost delight, the full grown tree right beside the one she was hiding in indeed bore many juicy and round, red apples that looked so inviting and delicious. However, the ones on the bottom had already fallen off and there was no chance that her petite body could ever climb such a height to reach for the ones on top.
An adult surely could have reached that height but alas, she was just a child and that too, a civilian. If she possessed any shinobi skills, she could have run up and grasped them easily...before gently biting down on their shiny red skin and taking a mouthful of the sugary flesh of which the delightful taste would have spread in her mouth and the juice dribbling down her chin.
It had not occurred to her yet that she was not supposed to find a healthy apple tree out here, in the middle of dark, thick vegetation. What was on her mind on that moment was on how to get the fruits that were hanging above her head.
Her stomach growled loudly and she was starting to feel slightly faint. It was decision time and her chosen choice was to try climbing the tree.
Walking forward slowly, she grabbed hold of the trunk and tried to reach for the nearest branch. However, short as she was, the pinkette could barely reach it. Growing exasperated, she began jumping in an attempt to get hold of it.
The peculiar sight was being silently scrutinized by a pair of confused cerulean eyes that belonged to none other than Uzumaki Naruto. He had been chasing a little rabbit out here when he thought he saw a mop of pink hair bopping up and down not too far away. Sakura Neechan was the only person he was aware had pink hair and so, he abandoned the bunny and approached the girl in curiosity.
The area was dark; most of the suns' rays having been blocked out by heavy growth of trees. And due to this reason, he tried to convince himself that it really wasn't his Sakura Neechan jumping up and down in front of a tree...or was it?
For all he was aware of, Sakura Neechan was a genius, elite shinobi who could beat just about anyone easily and one who could fly amongst trees and hang upside down ceilings. There was no possible way that this girl who bore a striking resemblance to her, could really be his best friend.
A sudden realization dawned on him then and he congratulated himself for thinking out such a brilliant answer. Grumpy Sasuke bore a striking resemblance to Itachi San and they were both brothers. So it would be safe to assume that this girl was Sakura Neechan's little sister!
Though she had mentioned that she was an only child, she had also mentioned that she lost her parents a long time ago and she presumed that they were dead. So this could only mean one thing; her parents were alive and she had a new little sister she never knew she had!
As excitement filled his senses, the boy bolted forward in order to drag her back to Konoha. How overjoyed would she be to know that she had a big sister!
"HEY YOU! GIRL WITH PINK HAIR!" He screamed, waving his arms around in an attempt to catch her attention.
Unfortunately the little action was misunderstood by little Sakura who quickly came to a conclusion that he was yet, another bully who had been waiting in ambush. So, releasing a high pitch shriek that briefly stunned the Kyuubi container (hurting his poor ears in the process and also sending terrified birds fleeing away) she abandoned her beloved apple tree and ran, not caring where she was headed.
Uzumaki Naruto however was not one to be easily put down by that (he had heard shrieks far worse coming from old ladies who ran the moment they saw him, the process forgetting their walking stick) and he gave chase to her.
It did occur to him that she may be running because she had perceived him as a threat (most did) but since she resembled Sakura Oneechan closely, he decided that he was going to catch her no matter what.
He'd treat her to ramen after wards and was sure she'd feel better!
Thankfully, the girl soon began to slow down from exhaustion from the earlier running as well as hunger and let herself fall to the forest floor in order to catch a breath. It took him no time at all to reach her and when he did, the first thing he did was to peer into her face and grin.
Big mistake.
Q&A section/ Authors notes:
There you have it peeps. I apologize for history's 'worst chapter ever' and yet, there is nothing I can do to fix my brain yet. It has become overloaded with useless information drilled in from school and has to store many more for my exams up ahead.
I know. Four months and this crappy chapter. I...have failed you all. I must commit seppuku...
But fear not! I shall (try to) upload better chapters near future! -might gai pose- Though I can't really promise a good one until the exams are over. Also, I'm wondering why I had to pick protecting a prince for their mission; it's definitely unoriginal, boring and...well...there is really nothing to write on it ...
Anyway, here are some questions you might have about the chapter:
~It seems a bit obvious but, Biwako is Sarutobi's wife. She helped Kushina to deliver Naruto and was killed by Tobi soon after.
~ Kakashi being traumatized and still hot-headed...I think I will keep the hot-headed Kakashi for a while. There are three annoying brats around to keep his coolness at bay now aren't there! -grins- And one of them is cooler than him.
~Yes. Sakura is a bit of a sadist...at least in the eyes of the Hokage, Shisui and Fugaku.
~ The idea of Sakura being a bit of a rebel just popped in randomly into my mind and decided to keep it for lighter chapters in the future. She loves troubling Kakashi and hopefully, this would create a friendly bond between them. Also she agreed with Shisui just for the sake of annoying him. She loves Kakashi that much.
~ Toto~! It's what my little cousin calls me for reasons I don't quite understand and yet decided to use it because it sounds so ...adorable. For Shisui-pie of course. -cough- I think I'll let the pink haired sadist torture him with the name after the mission. -grin-
~She dragged Itachi out to protect her back and initially thought he wouldn't notice. But yes, he is motherf*cking Uchiha Itachi who am I kidding! He's smarter than Shikamaru, there's that. But then considering the number of encounters Sakura had in her past with Itachi and the brief battle she had with him a while back, I think she would be careful in not underestimating the kid.
~Sakura is making her clone who has transformed into Itachi act stupid on purpose..again to screw with Kakashi's mind.
~ Itachi is overly kind and generous to people and he often sees gestures like random chocolates and flowers from girls as humble gifts and nothing more. Do not...say that this is making him OOC. Kishimoto clearly stated that near everyone was aware that he was unsuited to being a shinobi simply because he was too kind and gentle. Before Itachi could kill his parents, (Fugaku had to urge him to carry it out when he hesitated) his father also mentioned that he was indeed 'a gentle child'.
He could be perceived as a killing machine by his enemies but his parents were aware that he was just a child; a lonely and sad child who was overly burdened by mistakes done out by the older generation and yet, bore them out without so much as a complaint.
Since Itachi Kun did not have a childhood as he should have had in the original series, I am very much looking forward to creating the childhood he deserves! I mean he's only 10!
~ ...Do not...try to capslock me to death alright? I know she cursed in front of him but then he is used to it probably, considering the people he hangs out with. -mental sweat drop-
~ My son is not dead. I don't know what happened to him back there but...I know mini Sakura did not kill him, maim him or rocket him to Suna. Knowing her, she'd probably scream his ears off or start crying to make him hyperventilate in fear that he may have broken her. Girls are after all...fragile. (Not really. -grin-) My apologies go to Kushina Sama; I have adopted him without permission.
~ About the fact that Sakura and Naruto were both bullied by children back then...I never actually realized it. -scowl- I think the series would have been so much better if little Sakura met little Naruto and became friends. Her parents don't seem to hate him either. Hmm...
Either way, for all those who read the recent manga; who else feels a bit disappointed (although happy) with it? I think it's nice that Sakura finally has caught up to her teammates but then I feel that she is loosing her originality and becoming more Tsunade like-
HOLD UP. WHAT HAPPENED TO HER ANYWAY? IS SHE REALLY DEAD?!
Rant is over and I hope you (at least a bit) enjoyed this (crappy) chapter which took over four months to write. -nervous smile-
Reviews make me happy and motivate me to keep writing so please, review! One thing...if you can please put forward as much signed requests as possible! Guest reviews make it harder for me to thank those who support me!
Owari~