Ay wasn't surprised in the least that Cee and Darui chose to stay to become partial citizens and shinobi of the Leaf Village as they got started on the paperwork the very next day after the parade to transfer themselves.
The only person who was not happy over this new development was Samui "Why, she's just a little girl Darui, surely you'd want a woman right" Samui despite never having told the man her feelings was trying to beg him to leave Sakura.
"Enough Samui, there's no getting through to him, if you liked him you should have said something much sooner before that day when he got engaged to Sakura" Cee frowned at the woman as Darui walked away from her.
Shaking his head "But she can't even satisfy him" Samui commented jealous that the young girl had what she wanted, Cee felt like he was about to pop a vein at that statement, and he had to hastily reign himself in before he exploded.
Before he could say something two men Sakumo and Minato dropped down next to them having been listening to the conversation as well "She makes a good point Cee-san, Darui-san is going to be living a celibate life until Sakura-san is grown up which won't be for a few more years" Minato pointed out.
Cee inhaled then exhaled "True but one thing you don't know about him, is that Darui is willing to wait however long it takes, it's not about being satisfied Samui, Darui loves her though he hasn't come out and told her that" Cee informed stiffly.
Trying not to think about Sakura in that kind of situation regardless of whether or not it was with Darui or another man, it was to cringeworthy seeing as he saw the girl as a little sister "If he does why wouldn't he tell her" Sakumo asked in confusion.
"Simple, Sakura's not ready for that kind of confession, sure she can make that confession herself but should Darui say those words to her, she'd most likely avoid him" Cee scoffed, remembering how Sakura had reacted to just getting a kiss.
She had been the shyest they'd ever seen her "I suppose your right, most girls do tend to get embarrassed when their crush admits they like them" Minato sighed, still a little disturbed over the situation but there was nothing he could do.
At her concerns being shot down Samui turned and started walking away in a defeated slump "Look Samui there are other guys out there besides Darui, I'm sure you'll find someone who you'll love even more than Darui if you look" Cee called out.
Only getting a half-hearted wave in response "One more question, we can understand Darui-san's reason for staying but what of you, what reason do you have to stay Cee-san" Sakumo looked the onyx eyed blonde in the eyes.
The answer he got wasn't one he was expecting "My reason huh….well I consider Sakura like a sister, I've been around her almost as much as Darui has so it's a given I would feel that way" Cee smirked unashamed to admit it.
With that he continued on his way and two weeks later after a trip back to Kumo, they received their official Konohagakure hitai-ate's "And Namikaze seeing as you were Hatake's sensei I'm putting you in charge of those brats from Team Seven" Tsunade scowled.
Minato straightened "Does that mean your going to send them out on a mission soon Lady Tsunade" Minato inquired worriedly, uncertain of himself since it had been a long time that he'd had genin to look after.
"Hatake signed them up for the Chunin Exams that are coming up soon before he left and Ay has demanded that every team participating require a certain amount of missions completed, which Team Seven needs to meet before they can enter" Tsunade grumbled.
Darui bit his lip to keep from chuckling at the woman's obvious frustration "That being said, they have a C Ranked mission tomorrow in the Land of Team to protect someone during an important race oh and Namikaze they have to take those horses" Tsunade growled.
Informing Minato of the mission and handing over the mission detail scroll "Pardon…why on earth would they need to bring the horses with them on a mission" Minato frowned in confusion over the odd order.
Thankfully Darui and Cee understood "It was an order from the Third Hokage when Sakura brought Kuri in to the village, he told her that Kuri would have to go on missions with them" Darui chimed in with the answer.
So Tsunade didn't have to "On that note we have an apartment to find and don't worry those three will be perfectly behaved for you Minato-san" Cee informed, exiting the office with his partner as they headed down the street toward the house.
Imagine his and Darui's surprise when they found Fire's Daimyo in the shared house "Ah Darui-san, Cee-san just the two men I was waiting for, I hope you don't mind but I took the liberty of finding a house for you two just across the street in fact" Juhi stood at their appearance.
Making them doubly surprised "Honestly Father try not to shock Darui-kun and Cee-san to much" Sakura giggled at their open mouthed expressions of shock over the fact that her Father had personally bought them a house to share literally across the street.
Even if it was only for six months out of a year, they now probably wouldn't have to pay a dime if they didn't want to "Any chance we can get you to accept rent money from the both of us Juhi-sama" Darui commented wanting to prove that he could provide for himself.
Juhi nodded in understanding "Of course, I suspected you might say that, and your allowed to pay any amount you feel comfortable with" Juhi relented easily, seeing as both were fully grown men and had been living on their own for quite a while already.
"Right thanks Juhi-sama, come on Darui lets set up, we'll see you later Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke" Cee dragged his partner out the door of the shared house and across the street with a set of keys so they could enter their new house.
In the meantime Minato had rounded up the genin minus Ino who was off on her own mission with her team and sensei, though once before them he floundered for a moment "Lady Tsunade decided to make me your temporary sensei" Minato finally said once he found the words.
Almost instantly Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura straightened "We're going on a mission, when, what rank is it and what are we doing on it" Sasuke was the first one to ask, having a feeling he knew what gaining a temporary sensei meant for them.
Minato blinked at him for a second "Yes, tomorrow, C, protecting someone during their race in the Land of Tea" Minato explained not sure he was up to managing genin, these particular genin to be precise if he was being honest.
Naruto sighed in response "Great which means we're probably going to run into a rogue during our mission" Naruto groaned out loud, hating outside the village missions the most out of all of them to his Father's surprise.
Though the statement did make him wary "Naruto's right Minato-sensei, our team runs the most risk of running into rogues" Sakura grimaced at the man's expression and for his sake she hoped nothing horrible happened.
"I suppose I should just be grateful you three told me at all, one last thing, your to take the horses" Minato sighed, telling the genin the last bit, they each shared a look but nodded not arguing then disappeared from the living room to start preparing for their mission.
Sakumo chuckled at Minato's weary expression as the younger man sat down on the couch "There a specific reason they have to take the horses with them on the mission" Sakumo questioned curious over that order.
"Yes apparently when they brought Kuri in, Lord Third told them they'd have to take her on missions with them and that applies to Hiraishin now to" Minato nodded wondering how he was going to keep Kakashi's students from any harm that would come their way.
Four minutes later the genin rejoined them in the living room comparing pouches with one another to see what they had in regards to supplies "Dobe seriously how the heck do you run out of smoke bombs so quickly all the time…wait don't answer that" Sasuke scowled.
Seeing that Naruto's supply was a little low "Like your any better Teme, dull ass kunai and oh whats this a broken sword" Naruto shot back with a glare, starting a round of Dobe/Teme until Sakura cleared her throat delicately.
Both boys paled and shut up in response "Thank you now can we please focus on the task at hand instead of arguing like children" Sakura leveled them a warning glare as she wrote out a list of the things they needed from the market and neatly repacked her pouches.
Prompting Naruto and Sasuke to do the same "Good grief those three are a handful" Sakumo commented when the genin had left the house to buy what they needed from the market, Minato in response became even wearier over that fact.
"It makes me wonder how Kakashi dealt with them" Minato sighed resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration, before deciding he might as well prepare for the mission as well just to be ready for any rogue that might show up.
Later on when they were relaxing Musubime came over "Heard you were going on another mission tomorrow from Darui-san earlier" Musubime said explaining his presence at the dinner table that night while the aforementioned was eating in his own house with Cee that night.
Sakura nodded in answer "We'll be fine Musubime-ni, sure there's a possibility of running into danger but I don't think it will be so bad to the point where any of us get seriously injured or anything" Sakura assured her older brother.
Sasuke's head popped up at that "That your gut feeling Sakura or just a guess, we all know that your instincts are spot on after all" Sasuke questioned, reevaluating his thoughts about the mission as Sakura got to talking.
She tilted her head to the side in consideration "Gut feeling I believe, we still have to be careful though" Sakura informed after a moment of thinking about it but added in that small warning so neither of her teammates let their guards down completely.
"Hey just thought of something, are we going to wear our new weights or wait until we get back to put them on" Naruto asked suddenly, eyeing the bandages wrapped around his arms and legs hiding the 19 pound weights he was wearing.
With 22 pound weights waiting to be worn since he didn't even feel the extra weight he was wearing anymore "Perhaps we should wait this time" Sasuke suggested not sure it was a good idea to try and get use to heavier weights while off on a mission.
Fortunately Sakura agreed with him "Okay" Naruto shrugged then resumed eating dinner as Sakura chatted back and forth with Musubime who started asking her a few questions about some things he was confused over before he eventually left to go back next door.
Darui popped by to tell Sakura goodnight and soon the entire house was fast asleep and the next morning immediately after breakfast, Kuri and Hiraishin were readied and of course being the only girl Sakura rode on Hiraishin.
Minato however decided he'd rather walk "So it looks like at this pace we'll reach the Land of Tea in about half a day, let's go double time so that way we have time to scout" Minato suggested, looking at a map he'd bought.
Since this was his first mission since coming back to life "Alright we have our orders Naruto, Sasuke" Sakura nodded then practically laid down in the saddle as she urged Hiraishin into a full gallop leaving a dust trail as he charged down the path.
"You are so on Sakura" Sasuke rubbed his nose, tapped Kuri's flank and the ivory horse took off after her companion, Naruto holding on for dear life but laughing excitedly at the same time, Minato shook his head with a chuckle but also sped up.
Keeping an even pace with the two horses who were carrying his temporary genin without even breaking a sweat though he was amused when Sasuke and Sakura engaged in a sort of race "Come on Kuri" Naruto of course was cheering Kuri on.
As they raced evenly along each others sides, what surprised Minato however was that both Kuri and Hiraishin seemed to be evenly matched in speed, a few hours later, he signaled to Sakura to slow down and she pulled on Hiraishin's reigns.
Sasuke following her lead "It's about lunchtime, just in case we better stop, eat something and let these two have a breather" Minato explained once the genin had joined him on the ground instead of sitting in the saddles on the horses.
While gesturing to the dango stand "Sounds good enough for me" Sasuke shrugged, a little put out that he hadn't been able to beat Sakura in that little race, even if both horses had been evenly matched to his pleasure.
Meaning that they had trained Kuri right all by themselves "Me to, plus my bum is sore from the saddle" Naruto chimed in rubbing his tailbone as they tied Hiraishin and Kuri to the post where the water trough was and left a feed bag for them to eat out of as well.
Considering they'd come prepared "You'll get use to it" Sakura said in a slightly apologetic tone, not offering to heal him because it was such a weird place and she didn't want to be accused of being a pervert should anyone see her and think the wrong thing about the situation.
Like that they entered the stand and chose a table to sit at and order something to eat, Sakura of course chose something healthy "Did it take you a long time to get use to riding in saddles Sakura-chan" Naruto asked once he had his order of chicken/barley ramen before him.
A platter of dango to share in the middle of the table "Oh yes and trust me your whole body starts to ache if you ride for to long" Sakura winced in remembrance to the riding lessons and how painful they had been until she'd gotten use to them.
"Really, guess it's a good thing we'll have time to scout and rest after we arrive then" Sasuke grimaced only realizing just then what they'd brought upon themselves by wanting to have a horse, though Sakura had years ahead of them in riding.
Given the professional way she'd rode Hiraishin earlier while he and Naruto were still essentially beginners "Now, now just like Sakura said you two, you'll get use to it, it's a bit like wearing weights if you think about it" Minato chimed in.
Placating the boys when he thought they were about to start arguing again, with that the four of them continued eating and just as they were finishing up someone slammed their hand down on the table "Look at this a bunch of lazy no good ninja, I don't mean you of course sweetheart" and all looked to see a brunet.
Sakura blinked blankly at the idiot who had just tried to flirt with her "Popular with young men aren't you Sakura" Minato commented with a sigh watching to see how she reacted to the young man that was stood hand on their table.
In response Sakura scoffed shooting the teenager a unimpressed glare then she gripped his wrist as the waitress walked over "Hmm is something wrong" the woman frowned eyeing the situation worriedly.
"Yes, he can pay for his own food seeing as we don't know him and by the way don't call me sweetheart, I'm taken and happily so" Sakura scowled releasing her captive who stepped back spluttering in outrage over the fact that she'd caught on to what he was doing.
Naruto choked on his tea while Sasuke glared outright, sharingan activated "Just be glad she didn't break your wrist for the insult to us" Sasuke looked more dangerous than he ever had before as he placed down some ryo to cover his part of the bill.
Taking a small satisfaction out of the situation when he saw the teenagers adams apple bob in nervousness while gulping audibly "Next time don't be a blatant fool and insult shinobi, we don't take kindly to it" Naruto snapped.
Doing as Sasuke and Sakura had by leaving ryo to cover their bill, Minato was shocked at their sudden viciousness but he did agree "Their right you know, and just be glad you're a civilian otherwise you wouldn't have escaped with your life from that" Minato added.
Much more intimidating apparently as the brunet disappeared from the stand after hastily shoving some money at the waitress to pay for his own bill "And honestly I wish they'd leave me alone" Sakura huffed remembering what Minato had said earlier.
About being popular with young men "Of course, of course" Minato chuckled as they climbed back up onto the horses, making sure to seal the feed bag away they'd left for Kuri and Hiraishin to eat out of while they were eating.
Wondering how else the genin would surprise him while they were off on this mission "This time Kuri's going to beat Hiraishin" Sasuke boasted suddenly with a snap of the reigns in his hands all that was left was a dust trail in the wake of the horse taking off.
Sasuke's eye twitched especially when Naruto called over his shoulder "Keep up if you can" Naruto laughed clearly enjoying himself once again, Sakura sent them a scowl, flattened herself out in the saddle, and Hiraishin was off.
Minato shook his head at their antics but soon caught up where the two horses proved once again that they were evenly matched in speed unfortunately this was about to backfire on them as they galloped past the brunet of earlier.
And he made the stupid mistake of jumping onto Hiraishin's back causing the horse to buck wildly in response and send Sakura flying from the saddle where she landed with a sickening crack against the ground a moment later.
Immediately as Jonin in charge Minato was right there at her side a second later only to hear her whimpering softly in pain, cradling her arm, it being the loud noise of earlier since she'd landed on it, causing it to break under her body since she'd landed on it awkwardly.
Luckily she wasn't crying or anything "Can you heal it Sakura" Minato asked, helping her unwind the bandages to remove the weight in order for her arm to be healed since there could be no obstructions in the way while healing.
"Yeah, is Hiraishin alright" Sakura grimaced unable to see around the blonde that was her temporary sensei since he was completely in the way, then with another crack she set the broken bone and began healing her arm.
The man looked over his shoulder "He's alright Sakura-chan" Naruto called tying up the idiot who'd caused this mess in the first place considering the teenager was unconscious, probably suffering a concussion as well, it served him right actually.
Sasuke meanwhile was checking Hiraishin over just to be sure "Naruto's right, Hiraishin is fine" the Uchiha declared after a few more minutes deactivating his sharingan while the coal black horse trotted over to his rider.
And began nibbling on her long loose hair affectionately "Ugh" the brunet came to with a groan of agony and got four glares directed at him as he realized his predicament "Any chance you could untie me" he requested hopefully.
Only for three of the glares aimed at him to intensify "I don't think so, what your going to do is tell us who you are and what possessed you to do something as stupid as jumping on a horse in mid-gallop" Minato frowned.
Taking charge of the situation leaving Naruto and Sasuke to help Sakura seeing as she wasn't quite finished healing her arm, all three of them watching as Minato crouched down before the moron and the brunet gulped obviously intimidated by the blonde.
His silence lasted only as long as it took Minato to clear his throat pointedly and idly toss a very sharp kunai up and down expertly "My names Idate Morino and I just thought I'd hitch a ride since you four seem to be heading in the same direction that I am" Idate babbled fearfully.
Like usual Sakura caught on "Like Ibiki Morino or of no relation" Sakura questioned next with a particularly vicious glare aimed at Idate now that they knew his name as she strapped the weight on her arm again finished healing it and rewound the bandages to hide her weight from sight.
Idate sneered at her in response but found himself babbling the answer anyway "Ibiki's my brother" Idate admitted trying not to think about the fact that said brother was dead or so he thought anyway.
As the genin shared a look with one another "Then why the hell are you out here harassing shinobi, man wait until we tell him he's going to be so pissed at you for causing Sakura-chan injury" Naruto sneered right back.
Minato held up his hand motioning for them to be quiet "How can he be pissed at me when he's dead you guys are annoying so piss off and untie me already I have a race to attend" Idate grumbled irritated that this had happened in the first place.
"Why would you think Ibiki was dead" Minato narrowed his ocean blue eyes at the admission, completely ignoring the rest of what had been said for now at least, he was sure Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had caught on as well.
That this teenager was the one they'd been sent to protect during the race in the Land of Tea "Cause, cause…." Idate trailed off unable to say it, this time the intimidation tactic didn't work and Minato sighed.
Before rising to stand fully and head over to the genin "If he really is the client we're supposed to protect, then we should have him along, however I don't quite trust him either so maybe we should leave him tied up" Sasuke said when the man was near.
Luckily the blonde agreed with him "He and I will walk, which means no more racing each other, there's only a few miles to go anyway before we reach our destination" Minato informed, a little apologetically since the kids seemed to enjoy challenging each other for some reason.
With that Idate was hefted onto his feet still bound in ropes that he couldn't escape from, Sakura carefully climbed into Hiraishin's saddle and urged him forward a slow trot prompting Sasuke to do the same with Kuri until they were moving forward at an easy pace.
Nothing like how they were earlier "By the way why would Ibiki be angry that she got hurt, it's not like him to care about useless genin like you three" Idate clearly didn't know when to shut up and Sakura swung her head around with a crack to glare at him some more.
"Think we're useless do you just wait until you find out" Sakura curled her lip at him in disgust and spoke with her nose in the air, looking down on him he realized which bugged him even more for some reason
On Kuri, Naruto shuddered imperceptibly "Just be glad your not in range of her Moron oops I mean Morino, sorry" Sasuke smirked pretending like he'd only accidentally forgotten what Idate's last name was.
Not sounding apologetic in the least, Naruto couldn't help but snicker heartlessly at that one "Be nice you three, he is our client after all" Minato intoned exasperatedly at them not letting on that he was amused by their antics.
"Fine" Naruto relented grudgingly and simply turned his head forward to ignore any more attempts from Idate to get them annoyed at him and soon enough they got to the home of their client only then did Minato untie Idate.
Who glared and stormed off elsewhere while they greeted Boss Jirocho "Tell me how it is Idate-san came to be in your care exactly" Minato questioned once he'd sent the genin off to scout out the town for anyone suspicious.
Jirocho paused "Ah well he tried to mug me a few years ago and just stuck around" Jirocho admitted with a chuckle remembering that day "I apologize for anything he might of done however" he said seriously in the next moment.
Seeing as he wasn't going to get anything really concrete out of the man, Minato headed off to find Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura, all of whom were doing as he'd commanded "You know I really thought you'd all be rather stubborn towards me" Minato stated.
Sakura raised a brow at him in response "What because your not our actual sensei" Sakura asked and the blonde man nodded in response causing her to snort, Naruto grinned at that and Minato found himself surprised again.
"Kakashi would rain his wrath down on us if he saw us mistreating anyone in charge of us even temporarily" Sasuke explained as sad as it sounded it was the truth and he certainly didn't want to have another run in with the Copy Ninja's ninja hounds.
Naruto cringed in response "Yeah, so did you find anything out, like when the race is actually starting and all that" Naruto grimaced only to perk up in the next minute wanting to find out more about their mission.
It sucked that they hadn't seen anyone suspicious though "Race starts tomorrow, and this is it's basic starting and ending places" Minato produced a map given to him by Jirocho and showed it to the genin.
Who crowded together to memorize it "Basically he has to cross the ocean, grab the orb and take it to the shrine which is across a ravine with a bridge" Sasuke mused out loud, shooting a look at the port.
Only for his eyes to widen at what he saw in the distance "Looks like there's another port that can be used" Sakura pointed out, spying the dot on the map, glancing to Sasuke who had his sharingan activated "Whats up Sasuke" she inquired with a frown.
Sasuke deactivated his sharingan at that "There's a storm brewing off in the distance and my guess it will hit tomorrow right as the race begins, that second port might come in handy though I doubt Moron…Morino will allow us to dictate where he crosses at" Sasuke admitted.
Accidentally calling Idate by the wrong last name again this time not even purposefully, Minato bit his cheek harshly to keep from laughing "Perhaps he'll notice on his own, though what do we do about the boat at this port" Minato chimed in.
Hoping they could come up with a plan "Genjutsu and clones that way if Idate does run towards the other port we'll do so undetected" Naruto suggested, coming up with a satisfactory plan that they could all agree on thankfully.
With that decided upon Minato let them roam free for the rest of the day, though he did keep an eye on them, which allowed him to notice the person watching them intently, warning bells sounded in his mind at this person.
And he knew it was the shinobi hired to protect the other participant of the Todoroki Shrine Race but what really had Minato's blood boiling was how he noticed the other man clearly focusing to much attention on Sakura, filling him with a sick feeling.
Soon though Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura caught sight of him and decided that it was best to eat dinner early "Creepy" Sakura shuddered as she passed by the spot the other man was hiding in, instincts on point getting the feeling she was being stared at.
Her teammates gave her an odd look in response but shrugged seeing as they couldn't feel what she did "Tomorrows going to be a pain I know it" Naruto sighed once they'd found an inn and got a room for the night, followed by eating supper in the inn cafeteria.
Beside him Sasuke snorted "Lets just stick to the plan how much trouble could we get in if we do that" Sasuke said, only to narrow his eyes at Minato's expression, then he remembered Sakura's utterance of earlier and wanted to curse in frustration.
Watching them from across the room was the shinobi hired to protect the other race participant, Aoi Rokusho and his team of genin from Amegakure "Separate those two boys from the girl I can use her as a hostage" Aoi told the brats he was in charge of not aware of the Jonin with the Leaf genin apparently.
Each of them nodded their heads and before they knew it, it was the next day, Minato hid himself away since the other shinobi didn't know about him hopefully and as the doors opened Idate saw what Sasuke had yesterday.
It was clear in the way his eyes widened, Sakura being the genjutsu expert of the team despite Sasuke having his sharingan sneakily cast a diversionary illusion, then Naruto made four clones that headed for the boat at the main port.
As Idate ran for the other port that crossed to Nagi Island as well, them on his heels no one the wiser for the crowd only saw the Idate clone heading for the main boat to get on it, once they were well enough away and the boats had taken off, Minato decided it was high time to get started himself.
By running after Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura to Jirocho's surprise since he had thought the man had already left, meanwhile ahead of Minato "You guys are surprisingly quiet, not going to ask me what I'm doing, some protection you lot are" Idate was glaring at him.
Still sore about yesterday obviously "Like we need to ask Moron….Morino, there's a storm coming and we knew you'd catch on to it and run this way" Sasuke scoffed at the older male, messing up the guys last name again.
Getting a glower in return "Not to burst anyone's bubble but I just felt a genjutsu go up" Sakura chimed in, a lot more aware of her surroundings than the males right now so with Sasuke's help they released the double genjutsu.
Allowing Idate to turn in the nick of time before he ran right over the edge of a cliff "Okay now what" Naruto asked when they reached the other port, Idate ran over to the little shack and an elderly man came out.
Pointing to the prepared boat that the four of them got on "GAHHH" Idate gave a yell when mere seconds before take off Minato shot down in front of him and he fell on his rear-end in shock, Minato raised a brow before facing Team Seven.
And the reported to him that the only thing they'd faced so far was a double layered genjutsu which had been easily released "Right then we should probably get going" Minato nodded pleased that things seemed to be going well so far.
At that the sail was raised and they were moving slowly across the ocean "Also remind me to give you the bell test when we get back" the blonde said as an afterthought missing the looks of horror Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura gave him.
"Not a chance Minato-sensei, we already took it once thank you and beat it when Kakashi-sensei gave it to us, we do just fine on teamwork" Sakura sniffed, hands clenched in to fists as she thought back to those awful beginning days as a team.
On either side of her Sasuke and Naruto winced "Yeah no offense but that test was horrible" Naruto grimaced face pinched in displeasure as he remembered that day and the weeks that had followed.
Minato blinked at them "Beat it, Kakashi must have taken it easy on you, but if you insist on having good teamwork then I won't give it to you" Minato shrugged wondering why they seemed so against the test in the first place.
But now wasn't the time to ask "Great those idiots just don't give up do they" Sasuke groaned suddenly as another boat came sailing after them and their boat was suddenly under attack from water clones.
Sensing that these were the ones who had made the double layered genjutsu earlier "Moron get out of here, jump into the sea Idate" Naruto yelled at Idate who was stood frozen when things went from bad to worse and the boat was suddenly on fire.
Idate didn't move so Minato grabbed the teenager by his shirt collar "Catch up soon" Minato ordered dragging Idate with him over the side of the boat and into the watery depths below, the shock brought Idate out of his daze and they both started swimming the rest of the way to Nagi Island.
"Naruto, Sakura lets move" Sasuke grabbed his teammates and they followed their temporary sensei's lead, which led to him underestimating the enemy as the three of them were sucked into an sudden an unexpected whirlpool.
Moments later they managed to get back to the surface, Sakura missing from their sides as she'd gotten knocked out during the incident of a minute ago and now she was in enemy hands just as Aoi had demanded of them.
Ahead of the panicking duo Minato and Idate had reached the shore of Nagi Island only to be faced with the rogue and he had Sakura in his clutches "You quit the race and I'll give her back, if not I'll just keep her for myself" Aoi pressed a kunai to Sakura's vulnerable throat.
Just as Naruto and Sasuke raced up to them soaking wet "BASTARD LET HER GO" Naruto snarled, he was just desperate enough to tap into the nine-tailed foxes chakra even from the situation they were facing right then.
Yelling apparently was the key as Sakura's eyes fluttered "Tell them to back off and give up the race girl or else you'll lose your pretty little head" the rogue holding her commanded and she felt the cold metal against her neck.
It was a barely there pressure, Sakura's eyes went blank in response, calculating out a strategy to achieve victory, there was only one way to get out of this situation so she laced her eyes with her specially made genjutsu.
And looked right into his purple eyes catching him in her illusion, the kunai lowered and then she slammed her fist right into his side, sending Aoi Rokusho flying backwards to impact harshly with rocks which unfortunately broke him out of the illusion.
With blood trickling from his mouth Aoi pushed himself onto his feet and staggered forward a couple of meters "H..How I didn't see you using hand signs" Aoi wiped his mouth, vision going dark on him signaling he was seconds from passing out.
Sakura stood tall and glared down at him "Genjutsu, I laced it in my eyes and you were stupid enough to look into them when I looked up at you and for that I don't need hand signs" the pinkette smirked viciously at him.
Upon receiving her answer Aoi flopped forward onto his face unconscious "Well seems I didn't have to rescue you at all" Minato eyed her a little warily though he was proud that Kakashi's students did know how to manage themselves.
"I'll tell you what I told Zabuza Momochi when he took me captive, I don't do being a hostage very well" Sakura giggled, watching curiously as Minato drew a storage seal and sealed their attacker away in it.
Leaving no one to interfere with Idate who won the Todoroki Shrine race of course "Yay mission over we can go home and rest for a few days" Naruto cheered glad that nothing to horrible had happened.
Perhaps luck was finally tilting somewhat in their favor "Agreed and come Chunin Exam time we'll be Chunin by the end of it" Sasuke vowed as they climbed into the saddles of their horses, before they could leave the Land of Tea behind however Idate approached them.
Guilt clouding his gaze "I'm sorry, really and truly sorry for calling you all those things and doing what I did" Idate bowed low before them knowing it would bother him forever if he didn't do this since they'd beaten the one that had ruined his life essentially.
The one he really wanted to apologize leveled a calculating stare at him, her viridian orbs drilling into his head as she assessed him to gauge how sorry he really is, she was the one he was most afraid of if he was being honest.
After a moment Sakura nodded in satisfaction 'Of course Idate-san" Sakura smiled at him indulgently then climbed into Hiraishin's saddle, obviously preparing to head home back to the Leaf Village.
Idate seeing as he had nothing else to do at that particular moment followed them "So why aren't you walking I know you three are fast so what's the point of the horses" Idate questioned hands behind his head as they trotted leisurely down the path.
Minato the only one not on a horse "Unfortunately it was an order from the former Hokage and the current one is enforcing it, they had to bring Kuri and Hiraishin with them on the mission" Minato deadpanned.
Even if the horses had gotten them to their destination as quickly as they could run themselves "Kinda silly isn't it and how come your riding him again, shouldn't those two have a turn" Idate eyed Naruto and Sasuke on the mare.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes "One thing we learned about Hiraishin is that he doesn't like males riding him, we haven't had near enough time to get him use to Naruto or I hence Sakura's the only one who can ride him, we're fine on Kuri" Sasuke grunted.
Hoping that the nuisance left them soon "You got a problem with her name" Naruto scowled when Idate started laughing but he stopped at the glare he was getting from the genin, all three of them and he knew it wasn't wise to continue.
"Nah, it's kinda cute actually, anyway I'll let you guys get back to the village, see ya, if your ever around in these parts anyway" Idate waved then beat a hasty retreat back down the path to which all four of them sighed in relief.
Because now they could go faster "Hiraishin lets show Sasuke who's boss this time" Sakura snapped the reins in her hands and Hiraishin took off galloping down the path in the direction of Leaf, Sasuke of course took that as a challenge and soon Kuri was galloping at the same speed.
Leaving Minato to sigh and shake his head in amusement at their antics but hurry after them so they didn't get in trouble somehow while he wasn't watching "Good grief" Minato chuckled when he saw that the horses were once again neck to neck.
Sakura and Sasuke sporting determined looks on their faces while Naruto hug onto Sasuke for dear life no matter how embarrassing it might seem to others, both genin were practically laying down in their saddles as they tried to beat each other in a race.
Until it was clear they needed a break, lo and behold when he thought of it, they came upon that dango stand again and the horses were pulled gently to a stop "Phew I was starting to get sore again" Naruto let out a relieved sigh.
Glad to be on solid ground again and feeling a little bow-legged to his horror, it wasn't just him however "Maybe we should think about getting a cart to sit in" Sasuke grunted rubbing his back, whole body aching unfortunately.
The only one not affected was Sakura as she giggled heartlessly at them "Lucky for you two I can make an herbal bath for you two tonight that will take away most of the aches and pains you feel from riding half the day" Sakura glided past them.
"So tell me you three, why are you so against the bell test, I could hear the dislike in your tone when you spoke about having beat it when Kakashi gave it to you" Minato asked remembering back when they had been on the boat before the attack.
Immediately all three of them grimaced "Kakashi-sensei and I got started off on the wrong foot Minato-sensei, he kept trying to make me stay on the sidelines, calling me a delicate flower and saying I needed to be protected" Sakura answered politely.
Over it mostly but it wasn't a time that she liked to bring up really "Hmm understanding, seeing as you are a princess Sakura, but I taught him to teach equally regardless of that" Minato frowned holding up his hand when he felt she was going to argue.
"Funny thing you should mention her status, cause Kakashi-sensei didn't know she was one at the time, it was just Sasuke that knew, me and Kakashi-sensei didn't find out until she nearly died on our first outside the village mission" Naruto chimed in.
And Minato nearly choked on his tea at that, managing not to at the last minute thankfully "What he means by that is that she was struck by throwing needles that put her in a death-like state temporarily" Sasuke elaborated.
Just imagine their surprise when a voice growled from behind them "Talking about that day on the bridge are you brats, I never would have expected you to be way out here without your sensei" Zabuza met their eyes as they swiveled around to see the man.
Considering it had been at least three or so months since the last time they'd seen him, what really got them was the young boy standing at his side "Found myself a new apprentice, this is Kotta, he's got the same kekkeigenkai that Haku had" Zabuza growled.
Nudging the nine year old forward who bowed so low that he knocked his head into the table causing all present to wince and Sakura to reach out with a glowing green hand, Kotta held absolutely still for her but was otherwise silent.
The only one not pleased at the sight of the obvious rogue was Minato "Don't you three know that he's a rogue" Minato frowned at the genin he was temporarily in charge of and wondering what Kakashi would say if he knew his students were getting friendly with a rogue.
Zabuza's gaze snapped to his but eventually lowered back onto the kids "You don't have to worry Minato-sensei, Zabuza here is of the good" Sakura giggled, scooting over to let Kotta sit down next to her as the older male joined them at the table as well.
Still undercover mostly but a little more open with his feelings now than back then "Brats right I do good now even if my village doesn't know I'm alive, also care to tell me what the hell this is about" Zabuza slapped a book down in front of her.
A very familiar one, the page that had her picture and information displayed on it "Ah, we found Nuibari in a shop in our village Momochi and Sakura developed an attachment to it so the Mizukage let her keep it and become part of that organization" Sasuke smirked.
While Sakura pulled out Nuibari to show Zabuza just so that he'd believe her "I swear brat that thing is only going to bring you misery if you keep it" Zabuza growled, a little fond of the girl but mostly thinking she was stupid.
Sakura smiled innocently in response "Should anyone come after me for Nuibari I'll just do what I did to Orochimaru's subordinate" Sakura commented in the most vicious tone that had goosebumps rising on Sasuke and Naruto's flesh.
As Naruto spewed his tea in remembrance "Gods you just had to mention that didn't you Sakura-chan, ugh now it's going to take weeks to get that out of my head again" Naruto whined wishing there was mind bleach so he didn't have to remember that horrific scene.
Zabuza and Minato raised their brows in almost perfect sync at the exclamation from Naruto, and rested their gazes on Sakura who sealed Nuibari away again "I strung him up all pretty like and set off exploding tags on him once he was poisoned" Sakura relented to their staring after a moment.
"Well Tsunade had it right then, you three are vicious and not to be underestimated" Minato noted inwardly horrified but he supposed anything that helped them survive in this world had his approval.
Not long after once they'd finished eating lunch and Zabuza with his new apprentice in tow had left they climbed back onto the horses and galloped down the path to Leaf and arrived a couple hours before dinner time.
Minato sent the genin back to the house where they made sure the two horses had what they needed and thanked them with rewards for carrying them to their destination and back before finally heading in.
"Honestly couldn't just come through the front door could you" Ino scolded after having had the wits scared out of her by their unconventional appearance through the kitchen, they gave her sheepish smiles in response.
But flopped down on the furniture in the living room not that they had long to rest as Darui popped by feeling their chakra "The mission wasn't to hard was it" Darui asked taking a seat next to Sakura who lay her head down in his lap.
Prompting him to run his fingers through her long fuscia hair "Just tiring Darui-kun, plus we ran into another rogue who tried to take me captive" Sakura rolled her eyes, like seriously why was she the one always being captured it was annoying if she was honest with herself.
Darui snorted "But I assume you got away just fine so I have nothing to worry about right" Darui inquired and she shook her head, across them Sakumo frowned but he didn't say anything and eventually Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura got up to make dinner.
It was around this time Minato returned "Lady Tsunade says you have tomorrow off" Minato informed to the kids in the kitchen and later on after dinner Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura took baths and headed to bed early for the night.