This chapter leans more on the comedic side before returning back to the romance.
One Too Many
They reached the village around noon, a small hubble of commerce located alongside a massive lake. As this wasn't a shinobi village, everything moved much slower but Naruto found he didn't mind at all. It was always interesting to see how other villages lived to remind him that not everything was built around the fundamentals of being a ninja.
This said though, many people looked at them curiously as they walked by, then turned to whisper to their neighbor. He and Sasuke probably didn't stand out too much but the jounin level jacket on Kakashi must've been highly unusual. Feeling self-conscious, he kept his eyes lowered and tried to look as humble as possible. Not everyone was fans of their line of work.
At least, he tried to look humble until he felt a nudge at his side. He had hoped it was Kakashi but when he looked, he was horrified to find Sasuke had switched his position, now walking beside him. "Don't do that," he murmured, not looking at Naruto but straight ahead. "Hanging your head like a dog isn't going to make them like you any better. If they don't like us, then that's their problem. Besides, someone from their village sought out our help so that means someone here finds us necessary."
"I second that," Kakashi said quietly, ignoring a group of women that stared openly at him, scrutinizing his covered eye. "I don't think these people mean any harm but still, we chose this line of work and I think each one of us is proud of that. We're not doing anyone any favors by then being ashamed of our abilities. We're here to help them, so let's show everyone the good that shinobi can do."
Both of them were right and for that moment, Naruto forgot about all the awkwardness between him and Sasuke. Hearing both of them talk like that felt just like back in the old days of Team 7. Now if only Sakura could be here…but he wouldn't think about that. Instead, he clenched a fist and nodded. "Yeah! Let's do this!"
Though the summon came from the village leader, a couple of villagers were already standing by to show them where to find the beast. They were led through the woods on the other side of the town, the details being filled in as they walked. "The thing wouldn't be a problem if it weren't eating the livestock," one man informed, who'd introduced himself as Naoki. "We've already lost half a dozen chickens just this month alone."
"Some have proposed even killing it," said the second man, Gin. "But our elder does not agree. Besides…its children would be motherless."
"Wait, its children?!" Naruto cut in.
"Yes, it has young chicks, too young to even be fledglings," Gin answered.
"Meaning…" Naruto started.
"It's a bird of some kind, right?" Sasuke finished.
Naoki gave a nod of confirmation. "It's a massive bird, a species we've not seen before. But it moved here about six months ago and had chicks about eight weeks ago. That's when everything really started to happen."
"Since the elder doesn't want it killed, we'd like to have it safely relocated," Gin added. "There's not a lot of wild animals in this area, which is likely why she's taken to hunting domesticated animals around humans. However, just at the base of the mountain not far from here, there's a great stretch of forest that would offer plenty of prey. If we can safely move the entire family, then the villagers will be able to sleep safely at night knowing their animals won't be attacked."
Kakashi smiled at them and gave a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, we've got you taken care of. Now, where's her current nest?"
"Right…here," Noaki said and came to a stop after pushing aside a group of heavy branches blocking the way.
In front of them was a tree that stood over a hundred feet tall with nothing else around it. It was almost as though every other living thing had decided to give this tree a wide berth of space. Looking up at it, Naruto craned his neck to take in the entire profile, gasping as his eyes reached the top. "There! I see the nest! But…where's the mother?"
"Out hunting, likely," Gin said uneasily, looking around as though the bird might drop on them at any moment. "This is as close as we prefer to go but all you have to do is head north of here to get to the forest at the mountain. Good luck to all of you…" He and Noaki slinked back into the trees, leaving the three of them alone.
"When they said beast, I was thinking something on four legs," Kakashi admitted, blowing an impressed whistle. "Still, in some ways, this is easier. The mother will follow wherever the chicks go, so all we have to do is safely transport them and she'll come along too."
"Yeah, great thinking, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto cheered but Sasuke actually put his face in his hand and shook his head.
"This is going to go so wrong…" he muttered.
"Well, we need someone to get up there to get the chicks," Kakashi added, sizing up the tree. "Someone that's able to reach great heights…someone like you, Naruto," he smiled at his pupil.
"Wha?! ME? Why do I gotta do it?"
"You can make more clones of yourself than either of us which can stack on top of each other," Kakashi pointed out. "Or, you can use your control of wind to gently bring the nest down. Frankly, considering it still takes you two people to form even your Rasengan, I'd go with option one."
Naruto grumbled to himself as he thought about it but eventually said, "Fine. But if the mother comes back while I'm getting the nest down, what do I do? I can't fight while I'm holding them."
"That's where we come in. Sasuke, you take the front guard and I'll take the rear guard. We're not to make contact with her but use your chakra to scare her away. With luck, she's not seen chakra before and will back off if we wave it at her."
Naruto nodded, feeling a little better about the plan. Concentrating, he shouted out, "Shadow Clone jutsu!" and surrounded the tree with dozens of himself. "Alright guys, you know what we gotta do! Form a ladder and bring the nest down gently!"
"And what if I don't want to?" One clone asked defiantly. "All you ever do is boss us around, then get rid of us when we're not useful to you anymore. Why should we have to listen to you?"
Naruto sighed. There was always one.
However, before he could respond, Sasuke formed a clone. This one slowly withdrew his sword, eyeing the Naruto clones with a predatory glee. "Do as he says or this guy is going to start diminishing your ranks," the real Sasuke said, pointing a thumb at his clone.
"I'm not scared of you!" The rebellious Naruto clone said.
"Yeah!" the others cheered him on.
Sasuke looked to his other self with his own dark smile. "Have a little fun for me, please?"
"With pleasure," the cloned Sasuke accepted. His eyes lit up with the Sharingan before he sprang off the ground and attacked.
"Sasuke, no!" Naruto screamed, but it was too late. In a single swipe, ten of his clones had been taken out.
"Get him!" The original rouge Naruto clone shouted and as one, they charged the Sasuke clone. However, "Sasuke" held his own against them, twisting, slashing, and using the Fire Style jutsu to counter any wind attacks thrown at him.
"Hey, you idiots are going to burn down the forest!" Kakashi threatened and formed his own clone. This version grabbed the backs of both "Sasuke" and the other "Naruto" and hit their heads together. The impact made both of them disappear, bringing the charge to a halt.
"Now, do any of you want to be next?" The new Kakashi asked the group of Narutos. They complained under their breaths but ultimately said no. "Good. Now if we could get some cooperation here, all we need for you to do is to bring down the nest. Please and thank you." With that, he too poofed.
As the clones got to work, Sasuke looked over at the real Naruto. "You are the only person I know who's able to make clones that defy them. You really never fail to impress me, Naruto."
Naruto felt his face flush in embarrassment and anger. "Shut up, at least I can make that many!" To avoid continuing the conversation, he jumped high in the air to perch himself on the shoulders of one of the clones. The entire stack gave a dangerous wobble and many more complaints were heard but he ignored them.
There the nest sat, right in front of him. The diameter must've been at least five feet across and instead of being built with twigs, it had been fashioned with small branches with a bed of leaves on the bottom. Inside, he could see three birds the size of house cats. And these were only babies?! He gulped but carefully began to lift the nest up out of the tree.
Just when he was nearly finished, he heard a yell from below in his own voice. "Oh no, she's back!" one of the clones screamed and Naruto had just enough time to register the shadow of a very large bird flying across the sun before his support structure gave. With reflexes he didn't even know he possessed, he managed to grab the three chicks and curl them against his chest protectively, tucking the nest under his arm. However, this left him without any way to use jutsu to break his fall. All of his clones had decided to do a disappearing act at once.
It would, of course, be Sasuke who would jump forward to grab him, the both of them landing safely on the ground. It would have been nice to say something snide but Naruto was honestly grateful and any malicious words died in his throat. He didn't have long to think about it, however, as Sasuke yelled, "Run!" before letting him go and making a break back into the woods.
Remembering the plan, Naruto quickly ensured he had a tight grip on the three feathery bundles in his arm, plus the massive nest, and ran after him. Behind him, he could hear Kakashi also running and using his lightning chakra to scare the giant bird off but by the sound of her loud cries, she wasn't going to be deterred easily.
He tried his hardest to keep up with Sasuke but running and not being able to use either of his arms was harder than he thought. He stumbled over a tree root, very nearly dropping everything. Damnit, if he could just make a clone!
And just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw Sasuke split into two up ahead. One Sasuke formed the Chidori and broke away, going to the left. The other continued on ahead but slowed down a bit so he could catch up. "Don't know if it'll work but since the Chidori already sounds like chirping birds, maybe she'll fall for it," he told Naruto. They both looked around them and…sure enough, the mother broke off from snapping at Kakashi to instead follow the chirps coming from the Sasuke clone.
They poured on the speed, knowing the diversion wouldn't last long. Continuing to head north, they noticed the shift from the thick woods to the wider spread trees of the forest. "Hey, what kind of tree was that last one?" Naruto suddenly asked, trying to scan each tree to see if it'd be suitable. "We should probably put them back into the same kind."
"Who the hell knows, just pick one!" Sasuke called back, but then slid to a halt. "Here, this one will do." It was equally as tall as the last, with a wide clearing around the trunk. Home sweet home.
"Alright, but I need to form my clones to get me to the top," Naruto said, putting the nest on the ground with the birds inside.
"You two might want to hurry, she's coming back!" Kakashi called, already preparing his own Chidori.
"No time for clones then," Sasuke decided. "Naruto, grab the nest! I'll propel you to the top."
Through the trees came a deafening screech and Naruto saw the massive wingspan of the mother. She completely ignored Kakashi and instead dived straight for him. With no time to argue, he picked up the nest and jumped into the air with all of his strength.
It wasn't enough though and there weren't any branches lower for him to gain more leverage. Below him, he saw the massive bird swoop across the spot he had just been standing at, pulling back up to re-aim. Both of his hands were yet again full or else he could've at least blasted himself off the ground using his wind chakra.
But then, he felt Sasuke grabbing his foot and pushing under him. With the added strength, he was rocketed through the air, rushing through the canopy of trees at such a rate, it wouldn't have surprised him if he blasted right past the top and on into the sky. Instead, he used one of his free legs to wrap around a branch (which was nothing like using his hands and hurt like hell). Hanging upside down, he curled himself upwards to where he could finally sit on a branch.
Sasuke had picked well. There seemed to be a perfectly spaced opening for a five foot nest so Naruto quickly nudged it into place. He paused though to look at the chicks, the three crying loudly from all the action. "Sorry, little guys. Nothing personal," he whispered, reaching out a hand to pet one. They were quite cute, large brown puff balls of feathers with shiny black eyes and minuscule beaks. However, before he could touch them, one reached out and nipped him hard on the finger.
"YEOWCH! Never mind then if that's all the thanks I get!" His gentle thoughts about the chicks now ruined, he quickly shimmied back down the massive trunk. Together, all three ninja disappeared again into the forest, waiting with abated breath to see what the mother would do.
She looped in circles around the tree, climbing higher until she reached the nest. She cocked her head at the three inside, as though to confirm that they were hers, then turned and gave a final loud screech to any who still dared to trifle with her. Once she was assured that they were at peace, she began to groom them.
The three breathed a sigh of relief that finally, it was over. They immediately headed back to the village to collect their well-deserved payment.