Chapter 45

Hey all, we're back with another chapter. This will be the final upload before the 23rd/ 24th Dec but I'm hoping to have by then completed chapter 46 of this, the 1st chapter of the remaster and the first chapter of the new fic I mentioned months ago. So hopefully a triple upload, we'll see how it goes.

Oh we surpassed 350 Favourites too, thank you everyone.

That is all.

Goodbyes and duties

"Tri-kun," Minato called as the young man approached the door leading out of the Hokage's office. He turned to face Minato, a look of muted surprise on his face, "Could I ask you to remain behind." A raised eyebrow was followed by a brief nod, he quickly gave a few hushed words to Sakura, the Chūnin nodding nervously before shutting the door behind her leaving just the two of them.

"Hokage-sama?" Tri inquired as he stood in front of the room's sole desk. Minato, sat back with a single raised, curious eyebrow of his own. "I said I'd help Sakura through informing Kusuri-san's parents of her death," he explained. "Ah," Minato solemnly uttered, a flicker of understanding flashing across his eyes. Memories of the day he had to inform Obito's parents of his death, it still ranked as one of the hardest things he'd ever done.

'Kami, I miss that kid,' he thought before pushing it to the back of his mind.

Minato stood from his chair and walked towards one of the rooms several large metal drawer cabinets that held seemingly endless sheets of paper which in turn held seemingly innumerable pieces of information. "I asked you to stay behind because there are a few matters I wanted to go over," he said pulling open one of the metal drawers.

"Let's start with why you, Kakashi-kun and Sakura-san were all very vague regarding the fate of Zabuza."
"To put it simply, Hokage-sama. I have, in a sense, recruited Zabuza. I finally have a pair of eyes and ears in Mizu no Kuni. And while he is not technically a spy, he will at least keep me informed as to what's going on."

Retrieving what he sought from the cabinet he pushed it shut, a small folder now tucked under his arm. Minato had to admit, Zabuza was an impressive acquisition for Tri, despite any reservations that crept into his mind. But the fact of the matter was that getting information remotely reliable and up to date out of Kiri have proved to be an incredibly difficult task in recent years.

"You informed him of what happens if he's captured?"
"He has been fully informed, Hokage-sama." Minato nodded in approval, it meant Zabuza was fully aware that if captured then he was on his own. After all, Konoha couldn't be seen to be meddling in the internal affairs of another hidden village. That's how wars started.

It was a strange hypocrisy, however, because every hidden village engaged in espionage, at least unofficially. The assignments were off the books and personnel wore aliases. On the surface Konoha appeared as one of the better behaved Shinobi villages, under the surface, however, was a very different story.

It made for an amusing game of cat and mouse as everyone scurried around trying to get an advantage over the other. And Konoha was one of the best, able to call on Tri, Jiraiya and as much as Tri might hate to admit it, Danzo.

"Good, any idea how long it'll be before he starts feeding you information?" Minato asked as he sat on the edge of his desk, placing the folder down next to him, Tri stared down curiously at the light-green bound folder before answering. "I'm unsure, Hokage-sama. He first needs to locate and integrate with the rebel forces, one island looks just like every other out there. He'll contact me when he's in, so until then we wait."

Folding his arms Minato answered with a mutter, "Hm, that's a fair point. I suppose it would have been wishful thinking in the extreme to expect such a quick turnaround given the circumstances. Still at the very least you have an agent of sorts in Kiri now," Minato said finally in a conciliatory tone.

And almost immediately, he wished he hadn't said 'agent'. "Indeed and speaking of agents, I presume Itachi-kun has handed you our latest findings." Minato sighed, 'Here we go again.'

"Yes, he has and I have read it over – twice…"
"But..." Tri interrupted. "But… What you'd provided me isn't sufficient. There was nothing that can't be explained away." He could see the spinning tomoe, a sure-fire sign of his building anger, if there was anyone that made Tri's blood boil, it was Danzo.

He quickly stood and went face to face with Tri who actually stood two to three inches taller than him. "Seriously?" Tri asked incredulously. "Yes, seriously. If you want me to act then you need to get me something absolutely concrete, something that not even his most ardent supporters can refute. Get me that and you get what you want. Until then, stop pestering me with every little thing you find in the hope it's enough. Because frankly I'm growing sick of it."

Tri may have been taller but Minato possessed a far more potent presence and he was utilising ever shred of it as he looked his adoptive son dead in the eyes.

The office's ever-present ANBU, hidden in the far corner watched on with great interest, his imagination wondering how a clash between the two Shinobi before him would turn out, 'How long might the adopted one last?' he wondered. He'd been paying particular attention ever since the room emptied to just father and son. And while it didn't personally interest him, he had a feeling the contents of this discussion would be of great interest to the man who place the seal on his tongue.

"We are not going to argue over this – again, I've already had this 'discussion' with Itachi in recent days and frankly I don't wanna hear it anymore. So until you bring me absolute proof then drop it!" Tri knew he would never come out of this well is he persisted, so he backed down. Screwing his eyes shut he took a single step back, his face contorting as he fought to rein his emotions in. A few moments later his facial features relaxed and the neutral façade returned. "As you wish, Hokage-sama." If his face was neutral, his voice was anything but, it was cold.

Minato mentally sighed, he disliked having to 'slap down' his Shinobi, much less members of his own family, but sometimes it was necessary. He turned to retrieve the folder he'd placed on the desk and handed it to Tri.

As he opened it Minato spoke as if nothing had happened, "I also wanted to quickly brief you on your role in the upcoming Chūnin Exams."
"I'm to have a role?" Tri asked, a little warmth slipping back into his voice as his sudden interest dulled his acrimony. "You are. I'll go into greater detail during the full brief a few days before the Exams begin. But I want you to proctor the third exam."
"You wish me to oversee the tournament finals?"
"I do. I had originally intended Genma to perform this but my personal guard will be expected by my side for the sake of appearances."

As Minato spoke, Tri skimmed through the papers held within the folder. "Do you require me to organise or plot out the exam in any way?" he asked as he continued to read. "No, organisationally it will be the same as the finals of your Chūnin Exams, a one on one elimination tournament. Although I'd prefer to not have to replace every window within a hundred feet as the Raikage had to after your and Itachi-kun's match," he chuckled, Tri didn't laugh with him.

"It says there is to be a preliminary before the third exam?"
"Yes, as things stand this is set to be the largest attended Chūnin Exams for many years, certainly the largest I can remember. Four major villages and a smattering of minors are sending Genin teams. And due to what we've planned for the first and second exams, a maximum of twenty will reach the preliminaries but we only want ten for the finals."
"Ten? But that's going to leave you with five in the second round."
"Three of the five will be randomly selected to participate in a triple threat. This also allows for someone to withdraw if needed without messing with the number of matches too much."

Tri nodded his understanding, his and Itachi's double knock-out had left their Exams without a final, the second semi-final between Naruto and Kurotsuchi had to take its place. "And there is one more thing. You're my standby proctor for those preliminaries."
"How come?"
"Because I have selected Hayate-kun to oversee them."
"Ah, I see."

Hayate was a Shinobi not unknown to him, Naruto knew him better but he'd met him a few times so he knew of his ailments. Hayate had been born with a weakened immune system that left him highly susceptible to illness, most notably was his ever-present cough and pasty white skin. But despite his ill health he had become a renowned swordsman, had risen to the rank of Tokubetsu Jōnin and was a well-respected Shinobi in Konoha.

"And until the completion of the second exams and preliminaries you are to remain in the village." Minato immediately raised a hand to stop Tri whom was on the verge of interrupting, "But I will allow you to return to the capital to inform the Daimyō of your success." A little look of relief passed over Tri's face at that one allowance. "So no missions, but no sealing yourself away pouring over that seal on your wall, the first Genin teams will begin arriving in a week or two and with there being so many I want to project as much 'hard power' as possible to keep them in line.

Again Tri found himself curious, such public militaristic displays were very unlike his father especially since such displays were unnecessary simply due to his, the Hokage's, presence and because Konoha and Hi no Kuni were widely regarded as the most prominent economic power in the elemental nations.

"A bit out of character for you, might I inquire as to why?" Minato approached him and whispered into his ear a quick summary of what Itachi and Team Ro found to Hi no Kuni's north. "I'll ask him for the details," Tri assured him, there was a reason he was whispering and from the few words he received he got a good idea as to why. The watching ANBU was a little irked to not hear a word.

"Will that be all, Hokage-sama?" Tri asked as he closed the folder in his hand. Gently rubbing his eyes a few times he answered, "Yes, I think we're done here. I'm giving you forty-eight hours from tomorrow morning to report to the Daimyō and return." Tri would have preferred another day or two, but he again decided against arguing, it wouldn't end well for him.

"Very well, Hokage-sama," he said with a slight incline of the head before turning for the door.

-(*)-

"I'm not sure how I'm going to spend my evenings when you've gone," Naruto quietly pouted as he neatly folded a shirt before handing it to Kurotsuchi. The latest diplomatic exchange had reached its conclusion and today the Iwa contingent were heading home. "Then that makes two of us," she replied taking the shirt from him and snugly packing it into her suitcase.

It was late in the morning so they didn't risk placing the sound suppression scroll since the rest of the Iwa group were running around preparing for their departure. As a result they'd made their more intimate farewells the night before and now had to limit themselves to affectionate glances and split-second hand holding.

"It's going to be harder to do this during the Chūnin exams Naruto-kun. My grandfather tends to keep a close eye on me when I'm home and I expect him to be ever more watchful while he's in Konoha."

"We'll think of something," he said folding the final item of clothing. When she took it from him he placed a hand between her shoulder blades and made the series of small circular motions he knew she'd grown to like with his fingers.

With her clothing secured and the suitcase full the zip was pulled shut and the hard cased luggage sealed into a scroll. Her pouch belt was already around her waist so she handed the scroll to him and turned her back to him. Something which shocked Naruto.

The window blinds were still down so there was no chance of them being seen in the dimly lit room as he opened the pouch over her tailbone and placed the scroll inside. The sense of shock came from her turning around, for her to turn her back to him, another Shinobi, and a foreign one at that in so ritualistic a manner was to make an unspoken declaration of her trust in him. And Naruto was utterly flattered.

With the scroll securely tucked into the pouch he snapped the button clasp shut before gently wrapping his arms around her, pulling her slender form back against him. Making sure he didn't accidentally mess up her hair or ruffle her clothes he leaned in and whispered, "Thank you," in her ear. She smiled, he had recognised her action for what it was.

Now Naruto would have to think of a way of making a similar pledge to her, he couldn't do it right now, that would be poor form, but she would now expect it of him. To not do so would be to show a lack of trust in her, something which in the immense complexity of Shinobi relationships was deeply insulting. But he would have time, and he would bide it awaiting the right opportunity.

A knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts, "Kurotsuchi-sama, are you ready? It is time for us to depart," a male voice asked. Thankfully both halves of the young couple knew no one would barge in without first announcing their presence and also seeking permission to enter, so there was no need to jump to opposite ends of the room.

Nevertheless, Naruto begrudgingly released his light grip from around her waist as she answered. "Yes, I'll be with you in a few moments."

"Very well, Kurotsuchi-sama. I'll wait here for you." Naruto mentally laughed, they knew he was in here helping her pack, 'Appears none of the others trusts me in the slightest.'

"I suppose it's time to say goodbye," she whispered after turning to face him once again. "For now at least," he answered just as quietly. Both came together and shared the lightest of kisses, the contact as delicate as falling snow. It would be their last until next they met.

As expected of guests in fancier hotels, the guest had tidied up after themselves and a small black bag of rubbish now sat by the door. With all her possessions on her person Kurotsuchi opened the door while Naruto casually hefted the light bag of rubbish over his shoulder.

The Iwa Shinobi who awaited their exit spied the bag over Naruto's shoulder and failed in restraining a smug smirk. 'The son of the Hokage reduced to carrying rubbish,' he thought, finding it incredibly gratifying a sight to see. In return Naruto felt his own sense of smug satisfaction, only he hid his completely. 'Go ahead Iwa nin, laugh it up. The trade-off is more than worth it.'

The door was pulled shut, the automatic locking mechanism triggering as soon as the latch slid into place. With the two male Shinobi continuing to glare at one another Kurotsuchi, an amused look on her face, led them down the long corridor towards the reception where the others awaited them, Naruto depositing the rubbish bag in a collection chute built into the wall on the way.

Reaching the bottom of a flight of stairs they exited out into the well-maintained reception, it was a wide, welcoming space with a long wooden desk manned by two receptionists at one end, a smattering of comfy looking seats and a collecting of Iwa Shinobi in the far corner. Naruto found it rather humorous that they sought to remain as far away from anyone native to Konoha, a strange mixture of both apathy and suspicion etched on many of their faces. 'Guess it's going to take some more time for the sense of unease and mistrust to wane,' he thought.

Kurotsuchi handed her room key over to a receptionist and signed out before turning to count up her Shinobi to ensure all were present. A quick count revealed they were one short, "She's to meet us by the western gate, she wanted to bid her farewells to someone," another informed her, the disdain in their voice evident. Kurotsuchi scowled at them for their tone but only nodded.

She barked orders to get them moving and the ten-minute walk to the western gate that followed passed in utter silence, none of the Iwa nin spoke a word, not even to each other. They instead spent the entire time watching everyone, civilian and Shinobi alike. For many of them, this was still the equivalent of walking into the lion's den.

Their arrival at the western entrance/ exit of Konoha saw them reunited with the final member of their group, the petite medic that seemed to have enamoured Shinsuke. Of course, Naruto's quirky team member was also present, the two of them laughing at some joke he had made. The looks of disdain shown towards Shinsuke paled in comparison to some of the looks the medic received, many were of disgust and Naruto couldn't tell whether she knew or just simply ignored them.

"Keep an eye on your medic, some of the looks she getting aren't very friendly," Naruto subtly whispered to Kurotsuchi. A few quick glances were all she needed to confirm it for herself. "I'll keep an eye on it," she assured him. She'd be damned if she'd let the feelings from a bunch of her fellow Shinobi endanger her and Naruto's collective dream to not see their villages attempt to annihilate one another.

"Yo, Naruto!" Shinsuke called over in greeting upon spotting his commanding officer. "Hey Shinsuke," he replied with a wave. Any further opportunity to converse was severed by a sudden flash of yellow. Naruto was used to people suddenly appearing nearby after years of Tri and Itachi doing similar. The same, however, couldn't be said for Shinsuke or the Iwa contingent, many of whom seemed to want to jump a mile at so casual a use of the Hiraishin.

While his father could be at times a tad naïve, he did at least possess the foresight to apologise to the Iwa group for using the technique that had left a mental scar buried in the psyche of their entire village. "Sorry about using the Hiraishin but a de-brief overran and I wanted to see you off," he said sheepishly.

His apology didn't really seem to do much to alleviate the quasi-panic attacks he'd instilled in many of them, Kurotsuchi's eye twitched while members of her team looked upon the yellow flash with no small amount of trepidation, as if they expected the feared tri-pronged kunai to start appearing around them.

"Err, right – ok. If you could – ah, refrain from doing that in future, that would be most appreciated Hokage-dono," Kurotsuchi asked – no, pleaded. Minato, in Naruto's eyes anyway, actually looked slightly embarrassed by her request. "Uh… That would probably be best," he admitted. "And if I may. Please, whatever you do, don't use that around my grandfather while he's here for the Chūnin Exams." Seeing the obvious logic in her request, Minato quickly nodded his agreement.

At his nod a look of mild relief seemed to wash over her face, "Thanks. And thank you and your village for your hospitality, Hokage-dono," she formally said, there was no bow but there was a respectful nod of the head, an action Minato reciprocated, "You are most welcome, and we look forward to welcoming you and your villages Genin teams in a few weeks' time. As usual an ANBU team will follow you to ensure you return safely to Tsuchi no Kuni," he replied.

The rest of the farewells were brief, most of the Iwa group maintained their silence, Naruto and Kurotsuchi shook hands while Shinsuke and his friend shared a brief hug. The looks they received were spotted by Minato who in turn looked his son's way, a sad look passed over his ageing face, the younger blonde slowly nodding back.

Watching Kurotsuchi's form fade and shrink into the distance before finally vanishing over the horizon was collectively one of the easiest and one of the hardest things he'd had to do in years. On one hand all he had to do was stand there and watch her walk away and yet he desperately didn't want her to go.

It astounded him that in the space of just a fortnight or so her presence had chiselled out a space in his very being and her absence left him feeling incomplete. It was a strange, alien sensation, so was the hand waving in front of his face, why was there a hand?

"Hello… Naruto-kun?" Minato repeated for the third time, his hand just a few inches from his face. The distant look in Naruto's eyes quickly faded and re-focused as his consciousness was dragged from the depths of his mind. "Sorry, Tou-san. What did you say?"
"Are you coming?"
"Uh, yeah. Sure," he was quick to reply.

"I guess it must have been an important debrief," Naruto said after a few minutes of walking alongside his seemingly deep in thought father. "Objectively speaking it wasn't, Rezano-kun and Tri-kun returned about an hour and a half ago and there was a lot to get through."
"They returned together?" Naruto inquired, Minato nodded, "That's weird, what are the odds of running into one another on their way back like that."
"They didn't."
"They didn't?" asked Naruto with a raised eyebrow. "Their missions overlapped and eventually merged and it was an absolute clusterfuck."
"And why didn't I know of this before now?"
"Because Tri's mission was an ANBU operation."

It might not have sounded like much of an excuse but Naruto wasn't a member of ANBU thus he had no right nor reason to know what occurred on a mission involving Konoha's masked corp.

"Kakashi and Team 7 received what was supposed to be a fairly simple C-rank mission to escort the mission client back home to Nami no Kuni. On the way there they run into Gōzu and Meizu…"
"Wait, the Demon brothers?" Naruto said in surprise. "Yep, a C-Rank classification goes out the window right there. Anyway, a short skirmish broke out with Kakashi eventually tying them up and leaving them for a patrol to pick up."

"Hold up a second, Nami no Kuni is to the east, right?" Naruto asked for clarification. "It is," Minato confirmed. "And the demon brothers were apprehended where?"
"Hi no Kuni's easternmost province." Now Naruto just looked confused, "But no one patrols out there because…"

"...There's nothing there," both said simultaneously. "I know, Kakashi-kun's thinking bewildered me too."
"So they've inevitably escaped then?"
"No they're dead, they got really unlucky when Tri-kun found them. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

"After running into the brothers they reached Nami no Kuni where they ran straight into Momochi Zabuza." Naruto's eyes widened in alarm. "Again no one was hurt, at least not permanently – somehow. Kakashi-kun and Zabuza fight each other to a standstill before interference from Zabuza's underling masquerading as a Kiri hunter-nin saved his life.

"Not long after the fight, Kakashi-kun collapsed from the strain of overusing his Sharingan. Then they reach the clients home where thankfully Meshikamaru-san uses her intuition to request reinforcements.

"Sakura-san and her teammate happened to be conducting one of Tsunade-san's surveys in eastern Hi no Kuni and were closest, so I reassigned them. By sheer chance the last person on the Daimyō's and Tri-kun's kill list was traced to Nami no Kuni so he went as well, he'd keep an eye on the others while completing his own objective, it was en-route that he stumbled across the demon brothers."
"This is already sounding pretty ridiculous," Naruto admitted. "Oh don't worry, it gets better," said an exacerbated Hokage.

"Over the next few days they were able to figure out that the guy who hired Zabuza to kill team 7's client and Tri-kun's final target, a weasel of a man named Gatō, were in fact the same person. They found out Gatō had hired another Kiri nin, this time in the form of Ringo Ameyuri." Naruto's eyes widened a second time, "But she's dead, has been for years!" he exclaimed in shock.

"Well, she is now. Anyway jumping forward, it all came to a head after team 7 had been on the island about a week. Tri-kun went after Gatō via the large property he had constructed on the isle, Kakashi fought Zabuza a second time, Sakura-san and her teammate Kusuri-san had the unenviable task of tackling Ringo while the Genin looked after the client and handled Zabuza's friend, who it turns out possessed Hyōton."

Naruto winced, for such inexperienced Genin to fight for their lives with limited aid from their more experienced companions was a difficult ask, and to make a difficult situation even harder they had to combat a Kekkei-Genkai very little was known about.

Minato continued to talk Naruto through what happened, his increasingly exacerbated descriptions ending with the debrief that had finished not twenty minutes earlier. "I am amazed we only lost the one Shinobi throughout all that," Naruto said. He didn't know Kusuri but the death of a fellow Konoha Shinobi was always saddening.

"Are Tri-kun and Rezano-kun both at home then?"

"Rezano-kun will be but Tri-kun's helping Sakura-san fulfil her duties." Minato turned his head and saw the lack of understanding on his firstborn son's face. "Sakura-san was Kusuri-san's commanding officer, the task of informing the next of kin falls to her." Naruto didn't say anything further, there was nothing to say, he simply nodded once and they returned to silence.

-(*)-

"Are you sure we should leave the body there?" an incredibly nervous Sakura asked as they left the hospital morgue. "Yes, Sakura-chan. They'll clean and prepare her body for viewing and burial as well as make most of the preparations for her funeral. It lightens the load on what's going to be an awful day for her parents." She didn't look entirely convinced but her mind was in no position to think of a valid counter-argument.

"Have you met her parents before?"
"Y-yes," she hastily replied. "Good, it's always better that these come from people they know," he said as he guided her towards the address he'd had her write down days earlier.

He could see how jittery and on-edge she was since retrieving her from the entrance hall of the Hokage tower. So, irrespective of the public setting, he took her hand in his trying to bring her the slightest comfort, utterly ignoring the curious looks they received from passers-by.

He purposefully set the pace of their walking, too quickly would spike her anxiety and risk it overwhelming her, too slow would drag the whole ordeal out and likely lead to the same outcome.

He'd given some thought as to whether to put her under some sort of Genjutsu that would help her through this but alas, he didn't know any that would achieve this nor did he feel it would benefit her in the long run. No, she needed to do this herself, he would be there to support and help her through it but he could not do it for her.

"Do you know what you're going to say?" he asked her, with the little time they had before their arrival, he would help her plot out her statements. "N-no," she said hesitantly. "Hey, don't fret. You'll want to keep it short and to the point but you don't want to be too concise, you might come across as uncaring," he explained.

"O-ok. Do I tell them as soon as they open the door?"
"No," he replied shaking his head, "Ask them for entry first. You don't want nosy neighbours eavesdropping. Don't hide the reason for your presence, however, tell them it is in relation to their daughter, their imagination and fears will likely stitch it together before you even tell them."
"Do you think they'll ask how she died?"

"They might, I guess some take comfort and solace knowing that their child died valiantly. If they ask, tell them. Let them be proud of Kusuri, let it show through your words."

As he spoke their destination came into view and immediately Sakura's steps slowed as she recognised the house front, her desire to simply be anywhere else right now was overpowering. Yet despite that, Tri's voice cut through, "Sakura-chan, you can do this."
"I-I can't," she responded. "Yes, you can," he calmly replied, she didn't know how but his voice seemed to reverberate across her mind and the weight of anxiety seemed to recede in its wake.

He coaxed her towards the door and with a reassuring squeeze released her hand. Seemingly empowered by the simple act she clenched her hand into a fist and raised it up. Three times her knuckles struck the painted hardwood, the deep-toned noise spreading throughout the home within.

Tri turned 90° so he could easily see the door and the street, his Sharingan span menacingly, dispelling those curious as to the nature of their visit. They heard the lock release, Sakura took a final deep breath as the door opened.

Stood in the doorway was a middle-aged man and woman. 'Good,' Tri thought. The faces of both seemed to brighten for a moment as they recognised Sakura but immediately dampened again when neither saw Kusuri alongside her. That the son of the Hokage was present went utterly unnoticed.

She didn't know quite how she found the words, they seemed to simply spill from her mouth in an organised order. "Hiroto-san, Manami-san, may we come in, I'm afraid it's about your daughter." Sakura had said 'daughter' because she simply didn't know what honorific to use under such circumstances.

Their hearts plummeted, both were Shinobi and both could piece together the reason for the visit of their daughter's friend. Manami, a Jōnin, had had to perform this duty before, put on a brave face as she stepped aside, "Please, come in," she bid them. Taking her husband's hand, his face had already gone white, she led everyone to their front room, Tri shut the door behind them and tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.

Manami had to practically force her husband of over twenty years to sit, she quickly sat next to him, their hands all tightly clasped together as they hoped a fools hope that the statement about to come from Sakura's mouth would be something else, anything else.

With her hands held behind her back, grasping the opposite forearm, Sakura spoke, "Hiroto-san, Manami-san. It is with great sadness that I must inform you of the death of your daughter, Kusuri, on her most recent mission." She stopped there, no more needed to be said as her words settled into the minds of the now grieving parents.

Hiroto broke first and within moments, from the few interactions Sakura had had with him she'd noted him as an emotional man, the tears freely fell down his face. Manami held it together admirably, seemingly for her husband's sake. "What happened?" she asked.

"She was killed in combat fighting a Kiri missing-nin by the name of Ringo Ameyuri," Sakura answered. A flicker of recognition crossed Manami's face as she recognised the name. "Her body has been left with the morticians until you are ready."
"W-was she b-brave?" Hiroto asked between sobs. "Incredibly. She gave her life to ensure Ringo could be killed. If she hadn't, I'd be in the morgue with her, as would likely several others. She realised the threat Ringo posed so she made sure we could put down Ringo even at the cost of her own life."

"And what became of Ringo Ameyuri?" Manami next asked. "Dead by my hand. Then buried in an unmarked grave, a full report will be available in due course," Sakura blankly replied, the image of her fist driving into Ringo's face playing repeatedly in her mind. The older woman nodded once, she wanted to confirm she was actually killed and that her daughter didn't die for nothing. She pointed her head towards the hallway that led to the door. She was asking them to leave

Both bowed respectfully and quietly departed leaving Manami to finally let her grief wash over her.

Tri closed the door behind them, after the door shut Sakura's head and shoulders slumped alarmingly. For too long her body had been held up by mounting tension alone and now, with her duty done, it was leaving her and taking all her energy with it. She already seemed to be struggling to stand up straight.

"Come on, let's get you home," Tri said to her. "Huh?" she wearily murmured as he took her hand again. Immediately he noticed a difference, the speed of her steps was greatly reduced. The weeks of worry and mental fatigue that came with it had left her utterly drained.

Fearing she might actually collapse he released her hand and simply scooped her up bridal style and carried her. With chakra surging through his legs he jumped the almost fifteen feet up to the roof of a nearby building. And using chakra to lighten the impact of his landing on each roof he quickly sped across entire blocks of Konoha. If any had looked up at the right moment they might have seen brief flashes of pink and violet.

The distance to the Haruno household was quickly covered, Tri dropping down in front of the staircase that led up to the home. Not wanting to tackle walking up the steps normally and to lessen the risk of banging Sakura's head on the wall he shunshined to the top. He set her down on her feet but kept an arm around her waist to keep her from falling as he knocked on the door.

Thankfully, in Tri's mind at least, it was her father, Kizashi who answered. His eyes took in the sight of his utterly drained daughter being held up by Tri. "Hi Kizashi-san, can we get her somewhere she can rest, I'll explain afterwards." Snapping to attention, he quickly put his arm around his daughter's waist in place of Tri's.

"Mebuki-chan!" Kizashi called upstairs, the slightly worried tone of his voice had her charging down the stairs by which time Kizashi had laid Sakura down on a sofa, her head propped up on a few cushions. Mebuki noticed Tri first and then her daughter, her eyes snapping back to glare at Tri. 'Oh good, can't wait to see what asinine conclusion she jumps to today.'

"What happened?" she demanded. "She's fine, just exhausted," he first said to allay their concerns, "Her latest mission took a lot out of her mentally." Mebuki suddenly grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pushed him back against the wall with a thud. "You'd better not be the reason," she growled. That she was Sakura's mother was the only reason he didn't react.

"Let him go, Mebuki-chan," Kizashi tried. "No! I told you he was trouble but you didn't listen. And now look at the state our daughter is in," she hotly retorted. "Am I going to be allowed to explain or did you wish to continue running with your irrational dislike for me a while longer?" Tri darkly tested her, red and green eyes glaring into her green.

"Stop it. L-let him go, Kaa-chan," a quiet, worn-out voice demanded. Mebuki's head snapped around to see Sakura had sat up, her hands holding onto the sofas back, her arms visibly shook from the exertion of holding herself up.

"But, sweetie…"

"No, Kaa-chan. Let him go," she snapped in as stern a voice as she could muster. It was all she managed before falling back, the cushions lining the sofa's arm cushioning her fall. Mebuki released her hold on Tri before rushing to Sakura's side. "Mebuki-chan. Maybe it would be best if you put Sakura in bed," Kizashi suggested. The woman's ingrained worry for the wellbeing of her child snuffing out her animosity for Tri. "Sure," she readily agreed, picking her up and carefully carrying her upstairs. Sakura managed the faintest of waves, Tri gave her a wave in return.

Leaning his head back Tri rolled it around his neck to work the kinks out. "What happened?" Kizashi asked. "I'll explain it in order, the important details are towards the end."

Only pausing to remove her sandals and pouch belt Mebuki deposited Sakura on her bed, pulling the duvet over her and tucking her in. Sitting down next to her on the bed she pushed the hair that had fallen over Sakura's face out of the way. "It's not his fault," she whispered, unable to project her voice any louder. Within moments she fell asleep.

Mebuki sighed, she delayed immediately heading back downstairs and used those few moments as a chance to think clearly. She had over-reacted, that was obvious, but she had acted on parental instinct, that was understandable – wasn't it? But her first instinct was to accuse the young man who seemed to watch out for Sakura the most.

She didn't like Tri and that would likely never change, she simply did not trust him with her daughter's virtue and certainly not her life but even in Mebuki's bias mind she considered her actions unfair. She wouldn't apologise though, no, she was far too stubborn a Shinobi for that. Giving her head a shake she stood and slowly, quietly closed Sakura's bedroom door and headed back downstairs.

She could hear Tri's voice but not clearly enough to make out individual words, they became clearer the closer she drew. His words became audible to her just as she re-entered the front room, those first words were ones that shocked her, "Kusuri-san is dead."

"What?!" she exclaimed, Kizashi's face fell as Tri continued explaining. "Kusuri-san was wounded and resigned herself to death, to ensure Sakura didn't die too she deliberately took a mortal wound to restrain their opponent allowing Sakura to make the kill. I do not believe she feels guilt over her death but it has hit her hard."

"Is this the reason Sakura is in the state she is now?" Kizashi solemnly asked. Kusuri was known to them, they'd met a few times as she became one of Sakura's closer friends despite having only known her for a few months. "Yes," Tri answered, "You understand the importance of Kusuri serving under Sakura-chan, yes?"

Mebuki understood first, she gasped, "The duty of informing the next of kin," she said, a little colour drained from Kizashi's face as he too understood. "Correct, since remembering that Sakura has been a nervous wreck. While she has come to terms with her death well enough and worked through most of the grief, she was still held in a constant state of worry. Struggling to sleep she agonised over every detail of how she was going to tell Kusuri-san's parents until finally, not fifteen minutes ago, she did.

"The state she is in now came over her as soon as she'd finished, the anxiety and tension have been eating at her, with them gone there was nothing to hold back the exhaustion that had built up. I imagine she will sleep for quite some time so don't be surprised if she doesn't wake until tomorrow.

"And if I might make a suggestion, have Tsunade-sama or Shizune-san take a look at her, I know mental health is hardly the most understood of sciences but it can't hurt. When she does wake, tell her I've already informed Tsunade-sama of Kusuri-san's death. And while Hokage-sama has already given her a week off, I'll also ask that she be taken off of Tsunade-sama's active duty roster until the Chūnin Exams begin, I know she's on the list of Chūnin that are going to be enlisted to help out and she could use a break."

Mebuki found herself feeling grateful, a sensation she never expected in tandem with the man in front of her, but there it was as he provided a few more details on events he felt they needed to know from Nami no Kuni before bidding farewell.

He began walking from the room but stopped next to Mebuki, "You know. That you automatically assumed Sakura's condition was my doing doesn't reflect well upon you as a person or as a Shinobi. That you are Sakura-chan's mother is the only reason I allowed you to grab me." Now he turned his head to face her, "Do not attempt to do so again." There was no malice in his voice, his tone was calm and didn't carry the air of a warning, yet that is exactly what it was.

"Are you threatening me?" she growled. "No. I am simply warning you, put your hands on me again and I will break your arm." Without another word he left.

Running his hand down his face he began to make his way to the hospital, Tsunade would want a full rundown of what happened then he'd be spending most of the next two days running to and from the capital, the Daimyō would also be expecting a full debrief, the parents of the woman Gatō had kidnapped and murdered would have to be informed of his death and the announcement that all those involved were now dead.

Then there was a Chūnin Exams to begin preparing for, he needed to have a talk with Itachi, his research into the indecipherable seal was lax of late too. Right now Tri found himself instead wishing for the simpler life that Naruto led. "Wonder how bored he's been during the diplomatic exchange?" he quietly asked himself.

End Chapter