A/N: Okay, two things. First, I'm sorry this took so long. Life kind of went crazy on me. Secondly, before anyone goes ballistic - THERE IS NO ROMANCE IN THIS FIC! So don't go nuts when our teacher interacts with my OC. I promise, she's not very important. She's just a parent. Anyway, read and review please. And I don't own anything that you've seen drawn or animated.
elvesdragon - thank you for reading, and especially for reviewing.
Veve - Glad you found this, and even more glad you like it.
RandomReviewer - I don't mind rambling at all. Glad you liked the beginning and the meeting. Sorry the 'bad guys' confused you, I rewrote it so many times I couldn't tell if I was being too vague. As for Naruto - I'm actually not sure what I'm going to do with him yet. And, well, I'm afraid my chapters do tend to be short. Hope you like this one anyway.
He waited, his body relaxed and his breathing slow but deep. Sharp eyes carefully scanned the streets below his chosen vantage point. Voices raised in the afternoon air, blending into a babble of sound and motion as the market went about its business. But the ANBU captain tuned out the crowd, ears listening for one specific sound. 'And there it is' he thought, focusing on the feint birdcall whistling through the streets. It wasn't an unusual sound, in fact, if one wasn't listening for that exact tone and pattern, even their own shinobi wouldn't notice anything out of place. But it was a signal nonetheless.
Codename Dog shifted his weight, body now ready to move in any direction on an instant's notice. He searched closely in the direction that the signal had come from, and his patience was rewarded as his target came into view. A small, cold smile formed behind the white mask as Dog silently trailed after his prey. Out of the market, down a few streets, and a final turn into a sector of Konoha still undergoing repairs from the war with Sand, and still the target failed to notice his pursuers. 'Nine days of observation, and the meeting is finally taking place' he reminded himself. 'Alright, Numajiri. Let's see what you're hiding.'
The target didn't look very suspicious, his short black hair neatly brushed and his brown eyes warm, if a little nervous. But the very fact that he was here in his khaki pants and his polo shirt, dressy shoes shining amidst the dust and trash in the street, was unusual enough. The man, probably in his mid twenties, stopped in front of the shell of what had once been an apartment complex, careful not to lean against it lest the soot still covering the walls rub off onto his nice clothes.
Another soft birdcall sounded – The other comes. Do we move?– and Dog replied in kind. No. We wait. Mere heartbeats later, the other he had been warned of came around a corner and into sight. Rough, tanned skin, short black beard, Jounin vest… 'Asuma-san? That's… unexpected.' Dog's team waited, every muscle still and every breath controlled as they waited for the pair to give some indication of the purpose behind such a secretive meeting. They didn't have to wait long.
"Honestly, Gombei-kun" the Jounin instructor teased. "Look at you, you look like you're picking up contraband or something. Making me come all the way out here…" The older man shook his head, sighing theatrically as he held out a small object in one hand. "Next time, meet me across the street if you don't want your wife to hear you went in the store."
Dog leaned closer, paying careful attention as the Jounin handed over – 'Cigars?! All this fuss over a pack of damned CIGARS?!' One last, despairing thought ran through the ANBU captain's mind as the two below said their farewells. 'Cat will NEVER let me live this down.'
-
The woman paused, hesitating on her doorstop and smiling softly. With her eyes lightly closed, Kazumi soaked in the warmth of the afternoon light while children's laughter rang out from the streets. The day's shopping was done, her daughter was playing with friends, and her son was finally getting over his fever. After opening both her eyes and her door, the scuff of footsteps behind her caught her attention.
Kazumi turned, and then bit her lip upon seeing a shinobi standing at her door. She hesitated nervously, and then quickly bowed to her guest. "Shinobi-san, may I ask what brings you to my home?" The young man smiled, causing the long scar across his nose to scrunch up at the edges. "You may." That smile faded as Kazumi's eyes widened in surprise.
The young man cleared his throat and clasped one hand to the back of his neck, seeming almost as uncomfortable as Kazumi herself. "Ah, my apologies, Hasegawa-san. Please allow me to start over. My name is Umino, Iruka and I am your son's instructor at the Shinobi Academy." The Chunin offered a stack of papers with a small, rueful smile. "I know that Aki-kun was out sick today, and we have an exam on Monday, so I brought a copy of today's notes and the study guide I gave out in class."
A tentative smile answered his as she took the papers. Kazumi was still adjusting to the idea of her little boy becoming a shinobi someday, much less having full fledged Chunin showing up at her door. The shinobi – no, Umino-sensei, she reminded herself – gave her another surprise when he spoke. "So, is Aya-chan doing well? I know she must have been upset that Aki-kun was accepted when she wasn't."
Kazumi blinked. She was surprised enough that the man would come by for Aki – it absolutely shocked her that he remembered that both twins had taken the entrance exam. "She's doing well" she replied. "She was disappointed, of course, but she's still playing with some of the other girls from the trials. She's made new friends, and she isn't pouting when Aki talks about class anymore."
Suddenly, a high pitched shriek jolted through the house.
-
Iruka slipped past the woman in the doorway and raced down the hall, every instinct he had developed in either training or teaching pushing him towards the source of that horrified cry. A small part of his mind was vaguely surprised that the civilian woman was hot on his heels. Cutting around a corner, he threw open a door, fully expecting to find something horrible waiting for him.
Four of the five little girls in the room screamed when the door burst open, shock and fear on their faces. The fifth and oldest of them jumped to her feet, hands held out in front of her as she tried to explain. "It's okay, it's okay. Everyone calm down."
The Chunin's eyes swept quickly across the room, taking in the three little girls – 'five, maybe six years old' he registered – on the bed, the one child sprawled on the floor, and the girl standing between the two adults and the four little ones. The girl looked about ten or eleven years old, her brown hair pulled back in a braid and her blue eyes wide.
Seeing nothing obviously wrong, he relaxed, smiling for them as he nodded for the older girl to explain. She did so quickly, plainly afraid of him. "I was teaching the girls a game, and Seina-chan got a little over-excited when she got it right. She was bouncing and fell off the bed, and that's why she screamed. That's all, we're okay, I promise." The little one on the floor nodded shyly, sitting up but ducking her chin to hide behind her black curls as she agreed with the older girl.
Iruka completely relaxed then, a mild blush creeping over his face at his own over-reaction. The woman behind him sighed, but gave him an exasperated smile as she stepped around him to face the girls. "Seina-chan, are you okay?" The girl nodded. "Okay, that's good. Girls, remember what I told you?"
The older girl ducked her head this time as she spoke up. "Aki-kun is sick, so we have to keep it down if we're going to play inside. I'm sorry Hasegawa-san, it's my fault. I should have stopped before they got too excited."
The woman sighed again, but reached out to ruffle the girl's hair. "It's okay, Ishi-chan. Just… take it outside, okay?" Both adults stood back to let the girls pass as the brunette gathered the four younger ones up and ushered them outside.
Iruka took a breath to apologize for his actions, but the woman spoke before he could begin. "Thank you, Umino-san."
He blinked in surprise. "For what, Hasegawa-san? I didn't do anything."
She giggled, shaking her head as she denied his words. "No, you rushed in. You thought my little girl was in trouble, and you meant to save her. Thank you for that, even if the girls didn't need it. Ishiko-chan has been a great babysitter, but she's still only a child. If there had really been something wrong, I don't think she would have handled it well."
Iruka could feel his blush intensify under the woman's praise, and not for the first time, he mentally cursed his inability to control the red tint. But he smiled back, relieved that the woman seemed a little more comfortable with his presence. Making his way back through the house and out the door, Iruka turned to the woman one last time. "It's been nice meeting you, Hasegawa-san."
She gave him one last smile as she answered. "It was nice meeting you, Umino-sensei. And my name is Kazumi." As she closed the door, Iruka chuckled slightly over the way his day had been. Walking back towards the street, he paused for a moment to watch the girls playing in the yard. The four little girls were sitting in pairs, playing a rather complicated series of clapping their hands together, on their thighs and with each other.
As he turned away, he vaguely noticed Ishiko correct one of the other girls. He walked away with the girl's high voices ringing in his ears as they laughingly chanted. "Suzu-me, suzu-me, mi-er-u."
-
The group assembled the same way that they arrived – silently. They gathered together before their leader, each squad taking their places behind their captains. No one particularly wanted to report; they all knew that if the entire squad was present, then there was nothing positive to report.
ANBU had been searching for any hint – anything at all – that would further the investigation. Every shinobi present was nearly hair-triggered with tension, some even being forced off of the investigation temporarily because they had reacted too quickly and had nearly – or actually – injured a comrade. But there was nothing. Not one person had any information, not one lead had panned out. The entire ANBU organization had run headfirst into a brick wall. A dead end that no one seemed to be able to find a way around.
And their assumptions were correct. One by one, the squad captains moved to stand before the Hokage, each giving the same report. No progress, nothing to report. And last squad captain stepped up. Dog took a subtle breath, giving his report. And as he stepped down, he caught a slight motion from the corner of his eye. Cat had turned to meet his gaze, and there was an almost malicious gleam in her eyes. 'No,' he thought. 'I will never live this down.'
-
Senzo shook his head, chuckling even as he gathered the empty glasses. The bartender had seen a lot of different types of people, from withdrawn to violent to happy-go-lucky to downright insane – and sometimes two or more at once, this was a Hidden Village, after all – but none quite like the young man currently amusing his patrons. The kid, nineteen years old according to his ID, seemed like a ray of sunshine in the bar.
Eri-kun barely drank, seeming instead to come merely to try and cheer the other patrons. As usual, the affable blond was surrounded by people, everyone laughing and talking animatedly. It was a welcome change from the usual tension in the bar.
Senzo glanced over, watching as the young man slung his arm around the shoulders of a man a few years older. The boy grinned, green eyes nearly sparkling as he leaned closer and whispered something that made the man start, and then laugh along with the boy.
A/N 2: Before I forget - the girl's little game. According to my dictionary, Suzume sparrow and Mieru (to) be seen. So basically it's "Sparrow, sparrow, be seen." If anyone more fluent in Japanese knows better, let me know and I'll fix it.