- K -
The team continued to meet every day for the next week to train from 9 am until everyone was spent – sometimes sessions running into the night. The group all busied themselves preparing to spar for the day on another early morning. Sasuke and Naruto went through their stretching exercises, despite whining from Naruto and annoyance from Sasuke, while Sakura donned her gloves and Sai gathered his art supplies. Kakashi had grown accustomed to acting as a second string training tool, so he pulled out his precious Icha Icha to catch up on reading.
Sai and Naruto took time to make jokes at the expense of their old sensei. They mocked the silver haired man with the usual complaining of his tardiness, but Kakashi noticed Sakura's lack of participation. The two blondes responsible for her emotional difficulties seemed to be slacking.
"Naruto, I want you and Sasuke to practice your chakra control more. You're both still struggling to rework your channels with the new arms. Tree climbing, hanging upside down, and basic sparing mixed in." Sakura left little room for arguing with her directions on the men's training. She was the medic overseeing their recovery and no one could question her expertise – though that didn't mean there wasn't resistance to it.
The setting of the sun seemed to happen suddenly leaving orange hues splashed across the training ground while the two pairs exchanged blows and Kakashi neared the end of the novel he had on hand. Sakura crushed through lions and winged beasts while Sasuke and Naruto resembled their genin forms racing to scale trees with only their feet. The cold chill of winter whipped through the field and all teammates were aware it was as good a stopping point as any with the shift in temperature and setting of the sun.
Before it could be officially called, however, Sai spoke. "Hag, you've been fighting terribly all day. I was able to injure you while you can normally fight while yelling at Dickless and Traitor. It seems a waste of time for you to spar so poorly." Naruto and Sasuke were interrupted from their spar when they heard Sakura roar an insult at their pale teammate.
Entering the adjacent field, the two men were closely followed by Kakashi to find Sai in a deep split in the earth that dragged for 10 meters. He appeared to be dazed and Sakura stood in an aggressive stance. She seemed completely focused on Sai when Naruto shouted, "Sakura! It's getting dark, can we go get ramen?"
"Ah, um, yeah." Straightening her stance, she brushed off her medic skirt.
"It's your treat since you said okay!" Naruto bellowed, speeding off to Ichiraku. The rest of the team fell into step together trailing after the blond.
"You seemed extra mean in fighting today, Ugly." Sai commented with his plain, seemingly kind smile he always displayed while insulting others.
"Shut up, Sai."
"I mostly refer to your attempt to bury me alive. If I am to understand, burial requires dirt to entirely cover the person. You failed."
Instead of throwing a punch at him, Sakura heaved a deep sigh and paused in her walking to place a frustrated hand over her face. She abruptly removed the hand and spun on her heel, changing her direction of walking to be towards her house. Over her shoulder she coldly stated, "I'm not hungry," and disappeared into the blinding rays of the lowering sun. Even Sai seemed to understand the response was odd and cocked his head to the side.
"Ugly normally hits me when I explain things to her. Maybe she is during her bleeding time." Kakashi didn't know if he would ever grow used to the social stunting the dark haired team member had. Even Naruto, with his lack of tact, knew topics to avoid with Sakura.
The three remaining men continued their walk to find Naruto already halfway through a bowl of ramen and he announced he would have another to Teuchi.
"Where is Sakura-chan?" Naruto peeked behind his male teammates curiously.
"I believe she has been forced to take care of her woman proble—"
"She's tired," Kakashi interrupted with growing impatience for the socially inept man. The three men settled next to the man in black and orange, ordering for themselves.
Kakashi broke the silence next, surprising himself. "Naruto, have you been with Sakura much lately?"
The blonde pursed his lips and pressed a chopstick to them almost comically deep in thought over such a simple question.
"I can't get her to hang out as much since she got out of the hospital. I knock on her door, but she must not be home. I do see her with Ino sometimes and Hinata sometimes too. Sakura has been saying for a long time I should spend time with her when she's with Hinata, but I don't get why she thinks I want to listen to girl talk." The boy was truly clueless to the girl's feelings, that was at least a constant.
"It seems Ugly is not well. Maybe she is having feelings. I am not trained in approaching hysterical women, but I have heard flowers are a good diffusion tactic. The equivalent to cutting the wire on a bomb is how it was explained to me." Sai's bizarre metaphor had likely come from Ino who seemed to be enamored with the artist. From what Kakashi had heard in talk amongst Naruto and Sakura, the loud blonde loved hearing his rude comments about others while, in contrast, he had nicknamed her Beautiful.
"Maybe we should surprise her with something, I love surprises!" Naruto exclaimed throwing a fist in the air with a chop stick pointed towards the sky. Kakashi sat back watching the artist and blonde attempt to plan a gift for Sakura while Sasuke remained on the sidelines. Throwing her a pink themed party would likely leave them both hospitalized..
Kakashi found himself looking off in the direction Sakura had left in, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
17.
- N -
Despite contradicting feedback from others, Naruto believed himself to be excellent at intel gathering – sneaking in and sneaking out without a trace. Well, except for leaving a single ramen noodle at Kakashi's when he was trying to borrow a special edition of Icha Icha Paradise. That had not ended well.
Naruto had carefully staked out Sakura's house, waiting for her to leave for the hospital which guaranteed hours of absence. His efforts didn't take long as she left for the hospital at 7am as the sun rose. Naruto leapt to her rooftop as soon as she was fully out of sight, reaching for her sky light. He paused when he noticed the skylight had a new, chakra enhanced lock. Ignoring the odd change, he produced a house key and leapt from the rooftop to arrive on her front step. They had exchanged keys years back, when he had first come home from a mission seriously injured.
She had given him no say in the matter, berating him for not being careful and saying she needed to be able to ensure he was okay when he got back from missions, but he didn't mind either way. They had grown to be like siblings over the years, often leaning on each other in times of difficulty and celebrating with each other after accomplishments. He had been her test subject for plenty of healing techniques and she had helped him immensely with his chakra control.
The door swung open and he stepped into his second home. Ahead of him was the dining set and the kitchen sharing the same space behind it. To his right there lay a small living room with a loveseat, matching chair, coffee table, and a TV resting upon a small wooden TV stand. He kicked off his shoes and ventured right to the stairs that lay between the living room and kitchen on the right wall.
He walked up the stairs with heavy thuds, glimpsing the various pictures she hung in her stairwell. There was the old picture of Team 7 hanging there, all of them genin with no knowledge of the world to come. She had pictures of Team Kakashi as well as her with varied friends – Ino being a common figure. He opened the door at the top of the steps and walked into her room noticing that her slight disorganization was far worse than usual.
Normally Sakura had clothes haphazardly stacked in her desk chair or in the hamper she shoved under her bed. Currently, her clothes all but covered the floor – every type of article. Ninja attire, medic attire, pajamas, civilian wear, and underwear were all strewn about instead of packed into the dresser which was against the right wall.
Confused, Naruto continued his exploration into her bathroom to find a similar mess. The double vanity sink had all of her normal products, but they were scattered. More clothes, these dirty, were on the bathroom floor. The windows on the second story had their curtains drawn and, upon a test tug, were locked. With a smile he realized she had finally listened to her friends about locking her windows.
When she had bought the home, Kakashi had warned her about the many windows that could provide too much visibility into the house and the many entrance or exit points. She had given him a broad smile and announced "That's why I like it. After a long day of healing or after a long mission I can come home to a place that doesn't remind me of my livelihood. It's just home."
Naruto had been hoping to find hints into things she was interested in, maybe some sort of hobby like Sai had painting. Instead he was going to have to tease her about her cleanliness.
The one detail that did spark concern in him was the disarray of her bookshelves where she kept her medical textbooks, journals, and scrolls. There were books haphazardly pulled down leaving the rest of the books in those rows leaning sideways on one another. Random objects acted as bookmarks in different texts from pens to bobby pins to senbon needles. Upon closer inspection, all of the texts were centered around a common theme – poisons. It didn't seem out of the ordinary for Sakura to research such a subject, both for field work and for her position as a medic, but the way the research was being conducted was what concerned him.
Her usual color-coded papers and meticulous note taking had been cast aside for illegible scrawling on blank scraps of paper and random bookmarks. Carefully pushing aside a few of the top scrolls, Naruto was further confused when he found a medical text so old the edges were worn from many page turns.
The cover displayed the Uchiha clan crest.
None of these pieces seemed to fit together. The disarray of her house, her sudden focus on poisons, and her research on the Uchiha clan. Since Sasuke's return, Team 7 hadn't had any real conversation of his absence and Naruto didn't know what to make of her notes on the Uchiha crest and family history.
He decided to go to hokage tower and talk to Tsunade about giving Sakura time off, without mentioning his name, because Sakura was definitely not acting herself. The time for a serious conversation about Sasuke had come and, while it was likely going to be unpleasant, Naruto felt creeping anxiety at the idea of Sakura keeping secrets.
The blonde stepped back out onto her porch and took care to lock the door after him. He began his walk to hokage tower but was intercepted by Sai right before arriving.
"Hi Dickless. I assume you got the notice of our mission?"
"Eh I was actually busy with something, so I didn't. When is it?" Naruto scratched the back of his head not wanting to discuss his findings at Sakura's house.
"The summons did not provide much detail, but we leave immediately. Sakura is going to meet us after she finishes with her current patient." Naruto frowned slightly, his plans of a conversation were going to be put off. He shifted his mood, however, when he realized this may be the perfect way to spend time with Sakura and lift her spirits.
Striding into Kakashi's office with Sai, Naruto greeted him loudly. "Kakashiiiiii!" and ran to tackle Sasuke in a hug. Naruto had become more clumsy and it was much harder for Sasuke to resist the hugs with his balance difficulties. Tsunade was next to the older man, still having to help train Kakashi in his duties – something made difficult with how tardy and elusive the man could be.
The busty blonde lobbed a book Naruto's way that he barely dodged, and she followed with a voice just as terrifying as her throw. "Naruto, I do not need you yelling this early when I have a hang—headache. I have a headache." No one bought this excuse, but it wasn't worth arguing over – at least not for Sasuke.
Naruto and Tsunade argued for a minute over the potential presence of alcohol in her 'water' cup and Sai stood by passively filing away the variety of insulting names used for later application. The doors opened in the midst of Tsunade promising to limit him to D rank missions for a year. Sakura strode in wearing her white doctor's coat over black slacks and a loose red blouse. Her ninja heeled boots clacked against the tile as she walked and pulled her hair from its tight bun to let it relax.
The pink haired woman interrupted before the argument could become physical. "What's our mission?"
Kakashi leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh. "Mostly diplomatic. I want you all to deliver medical information, Naruto has the closest relationship with the Sunagakure and Sakura, you have the medical knowledge. I expect 3 days travel each way and a week's time in Suna working with medics."
Tsunade provided further detail after Kakashi had finished. "We're sending information on new vaccines Sakura has developed able to be administered younger than the current suggested age in order to provide protection to infants. While we already have a strong relationship with Suna, this mission is meant to be the beginning of a hopefully mutually beneficial exchange of medical information. The climate in Suna allows for research on plants we would have much difficulty growing and maintaining to study. Understood?" Tsunade finished with a drink of 'water'.
All the ninja nodded in understanding and Kakashi closed by telling them "You are to depart in the morning so you will arrive in Suna Wednesday night. Dismissed."
"Doesn't a full team for a simple meet and greet seem like overkill?" Sasuke had grown accustomed to being on the receiving end of Tsunade's glares. Coming back a wanted criminal who pledged loyalty to the Leaf had left her with plenty of paperwork and headaches.
"It would be no problem removing you off the mission roster again, Uchiha. Be wise to consider how incredibly generous it is to allow you on a mission outside this village. The Sunagakure has been incredibly kind to welcome you – mostly thanks to your being Naruto's teammate."
"Hn."
Sai and Naruto turned to leave while the pink hair kunoichi lingered behind in the office. Sasuke left at a slower pace and noticed the two women seemed to be holding their breath for everyone else to leave before they spoke to each other.
As the doors swung shut behind the men, Naruto spoke softly. "What's wrong with Sakura?" he asked, voicing something they all seemed to be thinking.
"Ino has told me female problems can span 5-7 days on average. I expect it will be at least 3 more days before she is normal." Sai responded, firmly believing this input was actually helpful. "I think it may be useful to ask Ino. She knows much on the female ways." Naruto nodded quietly, feeling growing concern for his best friend. Maybe Ino would have answers and he had time to ask her before they left in the morning.
Naruto broke off from the group and headed straight toward the Yamanaka flower shop where Ino often helped out on weekends when she was home. The door knocked against the overhead bell as he entered, announcing his entrance. Ino was flipping through a fashion magazine in her normal purple crop top and slitted skirt. When Naruto entered, she looked up and a grin spread across her face, one he had come to know as being followed with a baited question.
"Naruto! Why don't you come catch up, my next customer to pick up an arrangement won't be here for another few minutes!" She slid out from behind the counter and walked down the center of the aisle to meet him halfway. The aisle was surrounded by displays of flowers in every color, some living plants while others were individually cut or arranged in bouquets.
"Eh, hi Ino. It's good to see you, how are you?" he asked politely, impatient to ask questions he actually cared to get answers for.
"The shop has been painfully slow alllll weekend and I don't work at the hospital until Tuesday so I'm trying to loop TenTen into going to a hot spring with me tomorrow. I keep telling her that a fresh face is a sure way to catch Neji's attention, but she has never liked anything related to beauty…" Naruto let her drone on for a minute or two, but his patience for gossip was limited.
"Ino, do you know what's wrong with Sakura?" Naruto was never one to beat around the bush and her mouth snapped shut when he asked the question. "She wasn't joking like we usually do when we sparred, she didn't come to dinner after training, and she barely acknowledged any of us when we had a mission summons. I wasn't sure if she'd talked to you."
The chesire cat smirk on Ino's lips had disappeared and replaced with a look of concentration. "Have you talked to her?" she asked. From this response Naruto knew that Ino knew something.
"I haven't had a chance, other than our spar I haven't seen her. I did go through her house today – it only took her long enough to start covering and locking her windows. I told her to do that!" Naruto said with a bit of pride. "It was so messy it almost looked like my plac—"
"You went through her things?!" Ino screeched, shocking Naruto with her seriousness.
"I wanted to surprise her with something and I didn't know what to do. I was trying to get ideas, but I could barely look around with everything all over the place. I'm thinking the best surprise would be a cleaning lady." Ino didn't find his joke funny and moved closer to him with anger in her face.
"You can't just go through a woman's things! If you want to know anything you need to ask her yourself." Being tight lipped was unlike Ino and Naruto was about to ask what the hell was going on when the bell chimed again.
Hinata entered the shop and a blush spread across her face when she spotted Naruto. Ino's smile returned as she welcomed Hinata to the shop who stuttered out a greeting. Naruto bound over to her to envelope her in a hug while shouting "Hinata! I haven't seen you in so long! We should do dinner!"
Hinata's whole face and neck turned bright red and she started to sway before he continued. "All of rookie 9 is in need of a reunion!" Hinata gathered her wits slightly and Ino shook her head at his cluelessness towards the girl's feelings, the angry atmosphere gone.