15: Enemy Mine

All had gone quiet on the battle field as the two young shinobi met once again. Temari felt like there was a whirlwind in her stomach. The boy in front of her was definitely the same one she had once known, but he was so different! He was taller, much taller than he had been all those years ago. He would have matched her height he they stood straight, maybe even been a little taller that she was. His face was still the round, friendly face she knew.

His eyes bore into hers, filled with shock, yet elation as a small smile crept onto his face. "You're here."

"You're alive," Temari breathed out.

"What's going on?" Sakura hissed at Sasuke, "Isn't that one of the enemy?"

Sasuke shook his head, "No idea...but I don't think this was supposed to happen." He said, watching his friend and teammate

A clash of metal caught his attention as Kakashi fended off another blow from Zabuza. He glared toward the two blondes. "Naruto! Get your head out of the clouds, now!" He roared, startling the pair, "We're in combat, and that girl is your enemy! Show some backbone!"

Naruto was more than stunned for a moment, and looked at Temari, who was shaken by the sudden reunion. Steeling his nerves, Naruto gripped the Dai Tessen in his claws and spun it away from her. "Sasuke, I'll take her, you take the puppet user!" He shouted, looking at the rosette on the ground, "Sakura, there's one more. He uses sand based Ninjutsu, so use any Water styles you know!"

"Got it!" Sasuke grinned, cracking his knuckles as he advanced on Kankuro, "Bout time you snapped out of that funk!"

"Shut up and fight!" The blond roared angrily as he retracted the claws on his gauntlets, and lashed out with his fists, his eyes hardening as Temari drew a pair of her own Tessen. "I'm sorry we had to meet again like this." He said sincerely. "But you can think of it as payback for never returning any of my letters!"

"You kept writing?!" Temari snapped, slashing at his midsection with the bladed fan. "I was told you were killed in the civil war six years ago!"

"Like I'd die that easily!" He snapped, and aimed a roundhouse kick at her, "Do you know how much of an idiot I felt like whenever I kept writing, hoping to have something come back in returned?!" He growled, "I missed you, Temari!"

Temari grit her teeth as she jumped back from his kick, "You think I didn't!?" She snapped, "When I stopped getting your letters, and Father told me you were killed, a part of me died, too!"

Zabuza chuckled as he bared down on Kakashi, "What's with those two? Lover's spat?"

"Something like that." Kakashi sweatdropped, despite the situation.

"A little help over here, please!" Sakura yelled as she tried to fend off waves of sand coming at her with the only Water style Ninjutsu, sending out waves of slicing water across the ground, "Sensei, if we live through this, I want another Water jutsu!"

"Survive first, gripe later!" Pakura yelled, hurling a ball of flames at Baki, "And what the hell are you doing working with a Mist shinobi!?"

Baki was beginning to regret his decision of taking this mission. How the hell was he supposed to know he'd come up against Pakura and Kakashi of all people?! Let alone Naruto, whom he believed the be dead! "It's just a coincidence! We didn't know we'd come up against you!"

Pakura scoffed, "Rasa must really be desperate for money if he's willing to parlay with Gato!" She sneered, "How the hell is that scumbag still even Kazekage? Scorch Fist!" He delivered a devastating kidney punch, enhanced by the extreme heat of her Kekkei Genkai, sending Baki staggering to the ground.

"I can't keep this up!" Sakura yelled, pirouetting again, "I'm running out of Chakra!"

Naruto cast a glance at her, "Dammit! Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Two clones popped into existence, and barreled toward the girl to assist her. That was a mistake on his part as Temari slashed him across the face with her fan. "Ow, hey!"

"Get over it, pretty boy!" Temari grinned at him, "What's a little scratch? The girl's back home might like you even more with a few scars."

Naruto growled and wiped away the blood from his cheek, "I don't get scars." He said, revealing flawless skin beneath. "Remember? I'm just like Gaara-kun." He reached for his bo, "And you're the only girl that's been on my mind."

Temari actually blushed at that, giving Naruto an opening. He struck hard and fast, jabbing her in the stomach with the end of his staff, knocking the wind out of her. He didn't stop there, twirling the bo in a deadly whirlwind in both hands, keeping Temari on the defensive. The older girl fought back as well as she could against the constant motion of the adamantine weapon, her steel fans becoming dented by the onslaught.

Hand to hand combat was not her best strength, but she could easily tell that that was what the young Uzumaki was made for in his build. He was lithe and quick in his movements, even though his muscles were larger than what she saw of the Uchiha fighting her brother's puppets, Naruto was fast. It was almost like fighting against a Jiton(Swift) user.

"Sharpen!" Naruto suddenly shouted, and the girl watched as the bronze caps on the staff sharpened into rounded points, transforming the bo into a javelin, and the next moment, Naruto swept her feet right out from underneath her, one of the points directed at her throat. "GAARA!" He roared, "Listen to me now!" The sand around Sakura and his clones ceased all movements when the tip of the new weapon touched the skin of Temari's throat, "I don't want to fight you, or your team, but if you keep fighting against us..." he looked down at Temari, his blue eyes brimming, "I'll kill Temari-chan."

Kankuro, stopped dead as his Black Ant fell to the ground, lifeless, while Sasuke was stunned by the blond's threat. "He couldn't mean that..." Kankuro breathed out.

Sasuke remained quiet. For all he knew about their relationship, Naruto could and would kill her if push came to shove...but he knew he would regret it. Eternally.

The sand around Sakura And Tazuna became rigid, as if it were angry, slithering toward the forest, giving Sakura some much needed relief. The sand then came together and formed a shape as a familiar head of red hair rose up, his cold teal eyes on the blond threatening his sister. "Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto smirked at the boy, and sighed, "It's good to see you again, Gaara, but I guess the circumstances could be better, huh?"

"Indeed they could be," without warning, the sand swirling around him shot out toward his team, surrounding Sasuke, Sakura and Pakura with sharp blades made of sand. "Now release my sister, or else you will lose far more than I."

Naruto's eyes glinted, "You know I don't want to hurt her," he told the red-head, "If anything, I'm really happy to see both of you again after so damned long, but you guys don't know what's riding on this mission for us, not just our lives, but the lives of an entire country!" Naruto snapped, tightening his grip on his staff, "You have to understand, I can't afford to pull any punches."

Gaara nodded in understanding, looking down at his sister, who looked up at him, a gleam in her eyes. "It would not end here, you should know that," Gaara droned, "Zabuza Momochi is in command of this mission, and we are to follow his orders as per our agreement with Gato. We cannot afford to lose, either."

The three commanding Jonin had stopped, one still on the ground from his injuries, had stopped all of their movements to watch the younger shinobi in their stand-off. Kakashi was slightly startled that the blond had taken a hostage, a smart choice, but given who it was, he became worried. More so since the girl's brother was more unstable with his seal than Naruto was. At least the blond Jinchuuriki was in control of himself. He felt the need to end this before things really got out of hand.

"Kill me."

Both Gaara and Naruto's eyes widened at the girl's words and the blonde glared up at him. Naruto tightened his grip, making the metal creak under his armored hands. "You think I won't?"

Temari smiled up at him. "I don't think you can," she said, letting go of one of her fans, and moving it slowly behind her, "All that I know about you through your letters has told me you're far too gentle...your sensei's right. I am your enemy."

Naruto grit his teeth, tasting blood, "That doesn't change how I feel."

Pakura bit her lip at the exchange, hoping something would end this soon. If she moved, Gaara wouldn't hesitate to act, nor would Naruto, but the pain it would cause both of them was far too much for her to even think about.

"Stop them," Baki ground out pleadingly.

"And how would you suggest I do that," Pakura asked, looking down at a sand spike pointing at her jugular.

Zabuza actually chuckled at the exchange, "Little idiots." He muttered, "Gaara, hurry it up, and kill'em! Tazuna's right in the middle of your sand, now end him!"

Gaara glared at the man, "I do not take orders from you, Momochi."

"That wasn't a request!" Zabuza roared, forming a single handsign, "Suiton: Water Dragon Bullet!" Out of the nearby river rose an enormous serpent-like shape with two yellow eyes gleaming, and shot toward the red-head. His sand dropped from around the others and rushed to protect him.

Naruto acted without thinking and Shushined in front of the boy, "Futon Bojutsu: Vacuum Air Blade!" He brought the staff screaming down as a powerful blast of compressed air shot from the tip, slicing the oncoming dragon in half. "SASUKE!"

Sasuke threw his Fuma Shuriken toward his teammate, and watched as the blond caught it, unfolding the blades and forming a handsign, "Futon: Vacuum Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" Wind covered the giant Shuriken as he hurled it toward the rogue before the single weapon became a hundred.

Kakashi shot away from Zabuza as the Kiri nin brought his blade down in front of him as a shield. As the Shuriken thundered into his sword, the iron was chipped and eaten away by the Wind enhanced blades, getting through to cut his skin.

The man still stood, his eyes overshadowed with malice as he looked at the blond, "You..."

"That's enough!" Baki roared, "You just attacked one of my students! We withdraw now, or you're on your own!"

Zabuza glared at the man, "Betray me, and I'll use your blood to reforge my blade!"

Kakashi stood off to the side, his Sharingan still bared, "Zabuza, face it. You're outnumbered now, whether they admit it or not, this Suna team isn't with you anymore."

Baki gulped, "We need to regroup," he told the injured rogue, "Let's fall back and - "

An almost inaudible squeal came through the air as Zabuza pitched forward, his eyes roling back into his head. Kakashi was startled by the sudden attack from afar, and searched for the attack. He did not have long to wait as a masked Kiri shinobi flickered into being.

Naruto, not completely relaxed, yet, noticed that whoever the person was, they were young.

"A Hunter," he heard Sasuke say.

Baki looked at his team, "Fall back and retreat to base camp!" He snapped, leaping away from the battlefield, closely followed by Kankuro. Gaara was slower to move away as he eyed his sister and the blond that had downed her. Behind her back she held her hand in the ram seal, causing a small smirk to cross his face.

Even if Naruto had the advantage, Temari had been ready to take him down.

Naruto stood back, holstering his Bo, and reaching out to her. Temari glared at the hand for a moment, but reached for it anyway, letting herself be drawn up. The pair now stood face to face, Naruto standing just an inch or so beneath her height. "You've changed."

Naruto shook his head, "Not that much...I'm sorry, Temari-chan...I wouldn't have - "

"I wouldn't have let you," she retorted, smiling sadly at him.

Sakura was helping Tazuna up when she noticed the pair, "Naruto-kun, what're you - ?"

Surprising both of them, Temari rushed forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. Naruto did the same instinctively. "I missed you," the blond said, smiling over her shoulder, "so much."

"So did I," Temari nodded.

"Sister," Gaara said quietly, glancing at the two remaining Jonin, one of which was glaring at the two Suna shinobi. "We should go."

Sasuke came up next to Sakura, both of whom were watching their blond friend and the kunoichi. Sakura had a small blush on her face, "Sasuke-kun, you don't think they're...?"

Sasuke shook his head, "I don't know, but if that's true, then this can't end well for either of them."

Temari stepped away from the boy, smiling sadly still, "I'll...see you soon."

Naruto nodded, "Normally, I'd like the sound of that...but not when I have to fight you again."

Kakashi sighed as the two shinobi finally left, looking worriedly at Naruto. This is going to cause trouble. He sighed in thought, looking over to Pakura, making her way over to the boy to comfort him before turning his attention to the Hunter-nin. "I assume you're one of the Mist's Anbu Hunters?"

"That is correct," the shinobi replied, giving no indication of gender, "I must admit that I had been looking for an opportunity to strike during your skirmish. But until the young man attacked with that barrage of Shuriken, I hadn't seen the chance." The Hunter looked over at the blond in question, "He's quite skilled for one so young. Yet I do not sense the killing intent of a seasoned shinobi...he is a rookie?"

"To coin a phrase, that is correct," Kakashi said, covering his Sharingan once more, and bending to check Zabuza's body. He placed his fingers to his neck. No pulse, Kakashi thought, seeing two senbon embedded in the man's neck, He's really gone. He looked back at the Hunter, "I suppose you'll need to dispose of the body now?"

"Yes," the shinobi nodded, "Momochi Zabuza carried many a secret that does not need to leave our village."

Kakashi felt something was off about the Hunter, but didn't move on it. The shinobi was skilled, and with his team already weakened from the battle, he dared not risk another with such a high-level shinobi, especially when he was at his breaking point with the Sharingan.

As the young shinobi bent to pick up the body, Kakashi moved away, sighing when he saw Tazuna shaken, but safe. The Hunter was gone the next moment, leaving them on their own.

The silver-haired Jonin leaned against a tree, sinking to the ground in exhaustion. "Taking this damned mission was a mistake." He said as Pakura and the rest of the team came over to him, "Now we're way too deep to even think about turning back." He looked at the three youngsters, all of whom now sat around him, tired, but fine, thankfully. "You all did well," he said, smiling beneath his mask, looking at Naruto, "You didn't hesitate this time...at least not much. But I can understand it much better this time around. You fought with ferocity, and skill both required of a shinobi. You even took command, and gave out information on how to deal with the other two that went after Sasuke and Sakura...I can't imagine this whole ordeal has been easy on you."

Naruto shook his head, "I know Temari-chan better than that," he smiled sadly, "If I hadn't gone full force, she would've never forgiven me." He said, looking at his teammates, "Besides, as much as I wanted...Sasuke and Sakura are my teammates, and I won't abandon them like that."

Pakura placed her hand on his shoulder, gripping it gently, "That was well said, son," she said, nodding to him, "things will turn out alright. Baki didn't seem to fancy fighting us, and I doubt Temari and her siblings will feel differently. Gaara may be a host for a bloodthirsty monster, but he's still stable, far more so than he was in the past."

Tazuna walked up to the Jonin, bowing his head, "I'm truly sorry you have to go through this...if I'd had more to give, I could have hired a full Jonin team, but - "

"But nothing," Kakashi sighed, "My team made the decision on their own, and came here knowing full well what could go down, and they performed woderfully. I'm proud of each of them."

=x=

Temari and Gaara found their team waiting for them at their hideout. A small dwelling where Gato had set everything up for them. Which included a few of his hired thugs that made the girl's skin crawl. She and Gaara touched down just a few feet from them, Baki coming forward to embrace her, "You're not hurt, are you?"

Temari giggled, and shook her head, "No, if he'd wanted to hurt me, he would have," she said, stepping back, smiling with a few tears in her eyes, "Sensei...he's alive!"

Baki snorted out a laugh, "I should've known he'd be on your mind," he chuckled, ushering her into the shack, passed the leering guards that Gaara wanted desperately to murder. "But that was a close one. Zabuza certainly means business."

"Was there ever any doubt that I didn't?" Zabuza himself growled as the "Hunter" staggered into the room with him over their shoulder, "Baki, you and I need to have a long talk...like what the fuck went down out there!"

Baki crossed his arms over his chest as the masked shinobi placed the rogue on a cot, "You're a smart man, Zabuza, you figure it out." He growled, "We were outclassed, plain and simple. Pakura was bad enough if she unleashed one of those more deadly attacks she's developed. She could devastate the entire country if she wanted. Add to the fact that she had Kakashi of the Sharingan with her, and we had a slim chance, but that blond boy?" Baki shook his head, "I don't even want to think about what he could have done given the right motivation!"

The masked shinobi looked at the man for a moment, "Please do not patronize Zabuza-sama." He/she said, "It's a shame that I had to step in, but I fear that Baki-san is correct. That boy with blond hair seemed quite powerful for a fresh Genin."

Zabuza rotated his neck, popping it, "I agree with you there, Haku-chan." He said, looking at Baki once again, "That was no ordinary Genin, was it?"

Baki shook his head, "No, he's a Jinchuuriki, just like Gaara-kun." He said, looking the man in the eyes, "But that boy is able to control himself in the Tailed-Beast form. I've seen it. He fought with Gaara-kun once when he had been taken over by Shukaku, and changed into the Nine-Tails."

Zabuza grinned through his bandages, showing off the shark-like teeth that marked him as native of Mist, "Well, well...do tell."

=x=

"You weigh a ton, Sensei," Naruto grumbled as he and Sasuke half-carried half-dragged the Jonin along the path. "If your Sharingan took that much out of you, you should've said something earlier!"

Kakashi sweated slightly under the two Genin's withering glares, "What can I say? I was fighting a strong opponent."

"At least that excuse is believable," Sasuke grumbled, shaking his head, "Not something like, 'Oh, I wanted to memorize this line in my favorite book,' or something stupid."

Sakura giggled at Sasuke's bad imitation, "Sasuke-kun, I'm sure he wouldn't do something so silly."

Pakura glanced at the man herself, and saw a sheepish look cross his face, "Oh, you have got to be kidding me, Kakashi!" Pakura groaned, palming her face.

"It was a very good scene!" Kakashi argued.

Naruto scoffed, "How can you read that stuff?"

"Easy," Kakashi grinned, "Page by page."

"I will so drop you and leave your ass here," Sasuke growled.

"Even if I promise to teach you a really awesome jutsu later?" Kakashi said, hoping to take some of the heat off of himself with the bribe.

"All of us," Naruto huffed, "Don't you dare leave me or Sakura out of it!"

"Sakura and I, Naruto-kun," Pakura corrected.

"Sorry, Mom."

Tazuna chuckled as the team argued, "This is the team that was fighting for their lives only a few hours ago?" He laughed, smiling at the familial air about them. Even if was a little makeshift.

They crested the next hill and the old man smiled, "And there it is." He said, looking out over the waters, and the massive bridge, "Welcome to Wave."

Woo, two chapters in one week...I can't feel my fingers...Anyway, numb digits aside, a lot went down in this chapter. Naruto's reunion with Temari could have gone off better, instead we have the fight of a life time...sort of, that comes later. And we have Naruto's skills showing up.

Now a lot of you asked about the Taijutsu he's using, Stance of the Yasha Ape. That's something I took from Grappler Baki, I loved the episode when he fought with Yasha, a giant, intelligent ape for those that don't know. If you've seen that episode, you know how that old ape fights, and that he's a badass.

Point two, someone asked if Obito was already dead. The answer is yes, he is. Like I said, I didn't know if I wanted to go the whole Fourth Shinobi War route, Pain's invasion, of course, because that was my favorite battle in the Shippuuden series aside from Naruto and Sasuke's final clash against each other.

Now, spoiler alert, because I'm introducing a new Kekkei Genkai, Taiton(Typhoon Release). It's awesome. Also, don't worry, because we have some lovely Naru/Tem fluffiness coming up, though I'm not so sure about lemons for them this early on. Let me know what you guys think of that, if you don't mind, but I can easily hold off on those...unless I want some of my older characters to fee frisky :p

You guys have been a beautiful audience, don't forget to review, goodnight!